Housing Authority attempts this, but never gets it right in our area, they normally end up over paying for property, slumming it, letting people skip payments, then selling it off for pennies on the dollar once the project loses millions in a few years.

Immediately called the police and water authority to turn off water at the curb and secured the windows, of course. 

I know many of you are fans of Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad.  

His rental is 650 and the housing authority is paying 575.00.

You just want to check with the authorities that govern where the property is located to answer any questions you have before buying.  

Here in Ohio they would be SOL and many vendors won't contract with tenants for this reason unless they have authorization from the owner. 

This does not keep  any tax authority from their actions.First thing to check is the granting deed and see if any restrictions still apply.

I think @Bob Malecki suggestion about getting an authorization to release information from the borrower is the most likely route to work.

@Will Johnston I'm a native Washingtonian and have lived in and worked on these rowhouses most of my life as a carpenter & contractor so I speak with some authority on this.One of the first things I assess is whether the property is racked via settling , if this is the case and an entire perimeter wall is listing repair measures can be more intensive.

Any possession by Buyer prior to closing or by Seller after closing which is not authorized by a written lease will establish a tenancy at sufferance relationship between the parties.