I want an air tight transaction and will have an attorney review and give me their seal of approval once I feel like I have thought of every possible negative outcome for myself.So far the possible negatives I have been able to think of are below and my intended solution will follow:Dodd FrankFinding a tenant without a license (I would like to market to those who have high days on market)facing penalty for performing broker transactions without a licenseI would market, find motivated seller, let them know that I can provide them with a cash offer, they can sell with a realtor (pay the commissions, spruce up costs, holding costs, etc.) or they can sell on lease option and get someone better than a regular tenant in the home.I would use standard docs specific to my state but they would be modified to include the below:Letter of IntentI would have them sign an intent to sell where in it, it would state that the property will be purchased via an option and the option will be in the name of a land trust.it will state that I as an owner and friend will be allowed to assist in the finding of a tenant, negotiate the lease terms, and be allowed to show the property without any compensation and at my own expense.LeaseMy lease will have verbiage stating that the tenant will be responsible for repairs, and normal up keep / wear and tear associated with the property up to $250 (this is my benefit I sell to the seller so that they don't have to deal with every tiny little tenant issue.Tenant will be responsible for all utilities and they are to be in the tenants namewill be allowed to extend twice, each for a period of 12 monthsTenant needs to inform owner of extension no less than 30 days before lease expirationthere will be no mention of the option within the lease, PITI will still be owners responsibilityWaiver of Liability associated with LeaseI will have a document created stating that the owner is solely responsible for the final approval, screening and placement of a tenant and that there will not be any recourse for myselfOptionFor the consideration of $1 (with receipt from trust to the owner) the trust will have the option to purchase the property no later than 45 days after the expiration of the lease.The purchase price will be agreed upon within 5 business days before or after the date of the lease expiration and if both parties are unable to agree upon a price, the owner and trust will each get their own licensed appraiser, average the two out and split the costs.this will be an option / right of first refusal hybrid and will very clearly lay out the expectations that there will not be any seller financing, the transaction will be in all cash or if the beneficiary of the trust so decides to get a loan from a reputable / licensed lending institution they need to provide a pre qual letter within 14 calendar days of the lease expiration and mutually agree upon a closing date.I would then sell my beneficiary rights to the trust for $5k, and exit the transaction.

So a 10 unit building, 5 up/5 down, is probably looking at about a 60x60 building footprint, minimum, plus common area, plus compressors/utilities, plus parking for whatever mandate is in your zoning (2 per unit, or maybe more).

If a major repair is required I utilize funds from the account and then direct all monthly cashflow to the account until the 4% is restored.  

Stay below 30% utilization, 50% at the very maximum. 

From what I can see from the windows it seems the bank has kept the utilities and AC on, and aside from a carpet cleaning and some paint it is pretty clean.All that being said I'm am thinking of picking it up to rent for a few years, then I'll upgrade the kitchen and flooring and move into it, and rent my current home, or sell it depending on how strong the market is and move on to the next investment.Problem is that while I have awesome credit (820+) and work history, I only have maybe 5k cash I can use for the property, the rest needs to be mortgaged.

Utilize postcards as my marketing vehicle, beginning with sending out 1000 of them to my target audience per mailing to start with.3.)

I did my numbers and came up with a fmv of 23k so i was able to talk seller down to 12k from 25k...rent  is currently 425 a month my plan is to wholesale it as is investment property tenants pays all utilities  except water and sewage.

House tenants pay more utilities like water, sewer and trash than apt. tenants. 

We utilize technology such as Skype to substitute for face-to-face meetings. 

we did not use the utility so why should we pay for it?