talk to a lender about the underwriting before you buy the house. so you know what to expect the whole way along. if you use a fannie loan, it'll be 75% ARV yes you'll need a good credit score, exact requirements will vary by lender.all banks are different, you can't get a specific answer to a general question. you must ask the lender you're going to use what their process and requirements looks like. 

Once you have your criteria set and know what you're expecting, it should be easier to have conversations with agents and get started.

The property's value is not expected to raise but there is room to add an additional property on the land being purchased with the home.I'm open to all comments and concerns. 

Is the expectation to have negative cash flow until it's seasoned?  

And you’ll know what kind of rent/expenses to expect.  

The property value is expected to increase in coming years and the area seems steadily on the rise.

@Luis Medina  I would enter into a written agreement as to what both parties expect from this transaction so nobody is disappointed.

We get the judgement for the principle of it, but never expect to collect a dime from it.

Then if it turns out I don't need one or more of those things, it's a huge win.I guess my question is, worst case (foundation issues aside), what should I expect to spend rehabbing a completely gutted 1000 sqft house?

When the recession hits (soon) the cheapies will worth less and expect to deal with delinquent rents.....