With the current mortgage, there is negative cashflow, and because of the low equity, I don't think I woul be able to refinance without putting in a considerable down payment. 

I thought about making a subject to offer, but based on his PITI payments and the rent I could get in the area, I would be looking at negative cash flow after all my expenses.  

Not that I want that to happen I would definitely work with a real estate investment broker or realtor and make sure in which ever property I invest in is worth it. 1st comment- Get rid of those negative thoughts about bankruptcy and foreclosure.  

A negating technique would be to start off and ask the owner why are they selling, once you know this you can have a better idea about the seller - the property, their urgency to sell, or not. 

It is unfortunate that not all sellers are truthful or forthcoming about very negative information a truly honest person would be forthcoming about.

even at that I have to put 5 to 10k into them just to get fair market value out of them then take sales commish.. and of course you can't sell a home retail in most markets with tenants in them.. so you have negative cash flow for 6 months during the sale and close cycle.. and there you go 20 to 25k to exit.. 

The value of higher priced properties tends to be negatively affected if it is located in an area with a lot of lower priced properties.

It just seems more likely it'd be someone who would be able to structure the investment in tandem with other things perhaps in an effort to turn those negative numbers into positive ones. 

Don't let this deter you.No need to worry about the negative items on the credit report that are very old and minor.

Clear and open communication of potentially negative items is a good thing.Jeremy Roll is a full-time syndication investor.