As I'm looking into the market of flipping/renting a couple genuine "concerns" comes to mind.

no way.start grinding out deal analysis daily, then when a good deal comes your way, you'll recognize it and you can pull the trigger.

When one does a Lease Option one has equitable interest in the property, recognized by case law in most states.

If not, I'd genuinely love to hear why or why not.

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Instead of recognizing fee income for these services the sponsor allows the fees that would have been generated to "ride along in the deal" and get compensated after additional risks are accounted for.  

I recognize a 1% deal is difficult to find in the area.  

And if his purchase price was only 100K and he's starting with a 25K loss plus whatever improvements he's made it would take a long long hold by him to have any kind of recognized gain.  

Cost will be additional.This is my first time hiring a general contractor, so I do not yet have a good feel for recognizing a reasonable cost verses a rip-off.

Investors often do partial 1031 Exchange transactions for specific strategic purposes such as generating a cash position, managing the amount of taxable gain recognized, or reducing their exposure to real estate.Your numbers look good.