I can further break the lists down in my spread sheets to include owners out of state, oldest sales, etc. once I've done that to build my perfect list, I skip trace the owners and call them and very simply ask them if they want to sell.I've done hundreds of deals from little duplexes to full size apt complexes this way.Hope this helps!!

These are the one in a hundred.

I saw many REO giants doing hundreds of deals years exit out completely or cut out 90% of their workforce to keep the doors open when volume evaporated.

These exceptions can be found here.There are hundreds of nephews and extended family members around the state managing a few properties here and there.  

There are over hundreds of homes like this in my area.

Meh, on a million+ dollar loan, PMI over the entire life of the loan is going to be hundreds of thousands of dollars, right?

I would assume two or three hundred a month.

Can I risk this buyer with a bank appraiser that this fellow works with for his buy and holds - its not a hard money lender but one this investor holds dozens, perhaps over a hundred properties with in bundled commercial loans.

You are very lucky if you can achieve a 5% cap rate here and prices are in the million and multi-million dollar range where as in Chicago you are still in the low hundreds of thousands.

It's really best to spend a few hundred bucks and consult a real estate attorney in state and a CPA and see what they recommend.