A friend of mine - with deeded real estate in her account only and no cash - is expected to write a check for 10% of the account value.  

I'll drop a brief two cents in here. 

Because I am a land developer, a common obstacle I run into is removing dirt from construction sites affordable.

Good luck.Thanks, I definitely can see that I might have huge obstacle in getting the finance.  

If you buy a property with a horrible tenet in place can you evict even if their lease hasn't ended? If you can, can you evict the for any reason or does it have to something that violates the terms of the lease. I wo...

Ask yourself do they fit in here in this neighborhood? 

All one bedroom units are rented on a month to month base and none of them have intentions to leave (two are in their mid 60s - 70s and have been living there for 15+ years, the other is in her mid 50s).  

First is to confirm it is still in her name with the lien holder at this time.Run the numbers back words.

I think your experience in banking and financing will definitely help you in reaching your real estate goals since they are often one of the biggest obstacles to overcome in acquiring real estate. 

What we do (housing) has an inherent risk because of the potential violation of fair housing laws.