Hard money is best for people in specific situations.1)Bad credit2)No source of W-2 income3)Little to no money to put a 20%-25% down payment on an investment propertyIf any of these are true, then HML may be the best way to go.

Foundation -  Don't be alarmed to see a few small cracks in the foundation.

Anyway, my life situation took me from it.

Hi Stephen,I was in a similar situation earlier this year.

But based on your personal (family) situation you may or may not be able to claim the "active real estate professional" status on your tax return, which in turn may have significant tax consequences on your taxes due.  

I have no idea about the roof situation but will hopefully soon!

What are your strategies for an initial offer, that I could apply to my situation?

I'm often not quite sure what exactly is meant, because they have pre-determined codes that might not fit exactly the situation.

However I thought I would post here to to document this experience for anyone else who might find themselves in this situation and to ask are we the crazy ones for standing our ground or is this the broker in charge from hell?

No complaints so far.Try to stay more on the north side as crimes are less there.It kind of a risk reward type situation.