Parking, hunting, fishing, storage, farming, Xmas trees, farm stand, construction material/vehicle storage, beach parking/shuttle to beach, haunted hay rides/mazes, "tiny" houses on trailers, flea market...

& maybe from their experience what kind of deal I should actually be hunting for?

Asking the seller to vacate unit has to be taken on a case by case basis.I agree that you should also attempt to turn the illegal unit on the property into a negotiation advantage for you.I too dealt with illegal unit issue (accessory dwelling unit) when I first started hunting for multi units to buy.

There are also a handful of exceptions to be found for things like Hunting Clubs.

If positive cash flow is the desire, will it basically be a matter of hunting until the right place comes along?

A few really pissed me off in the beginning, so I hunt down many of their listings, and put options on as many as I can. lolol As far as the seller is concerned, im working for "free", so 90% sign.

So, at our local REI meeting the other night one of the local bird-dogs brought up what sounded like a legitimate deal, if her numbers are right, and with the little she told me they sound right, this is a 50% of FMV ...

They're defensive use is really a secondary consideration though they will each fill the role just fine.As to training - most of my training was hunting related firearms safety training.

Those that are in SoCal that "CAN" seem to have the time to spend hunting the deals full time.  

I'll update when I start striped bass fishing in the NC estuaries... or maybe I'll take up Washington county NC black bear hunting.