Also, if you have a 401k you can borrow up to 50% of it's value from yourself, pay yourself the interest and get a 5 year loan on that while you improve your credit.Another option is doing what's called a 60 day IRA loan.  

Is that based on an appraisal with your improvements factored in?

@Alex Sanfilippo, is your goal to rent to faculty and staff of the university or students?

Mostly, these buildings are well maintained and many investors see this as a “value-add” investment opportunity because through renovation and common area improvements, the property can be upgraded to Class A or a Class B+.

A landlord may end up needing to put in $2 per square foot of leased space in improvements to get a space leased.

Once the purchase of the home is closed, renovation funds are held in escrow to pay for pre-determined renovation work done by approved renovation contractors.The purchase of a house that needs repair is often a catch-22 situation, because the bank won't lend the money to buy the house until the repairs are complete, and the repairs can't be done until the house has been purchased.HUD's 203(k) program can help you overcome this obstacle by enabling you to borrow funds for the purchase or refinance of a property plus the cost of making the repairs and improvements in one mortgage.

They also pay for administrative costs such as updating the HOA home owner’s directory, billings and collections, covenant enforcement, routine legal costs, maintaining a web site, posting HOA governing documents on the web site, administrative staff, and other operational costs.

Great guy with knowledgable staff.

Its great to see that you dont let your personal circumstances prevent you from trying to improve yourself.

"A rising tide lift all boats" - by supporting others we improve our own situation.My $0.02...David J Dachtera"Success is not a destination.