in so cal it would be RARE to have a lawyer involved in this transaction @David Weintraub  we are a title and escrow stateso take out the 1k  and the two addition doc review fee's 750 and 795  those are straight to the lender for his profit side.other than that fee's are fairly standard..

@Aja McClanahan - I think you need to get an experienced contractor/architect and maybe a zoning attorney involved. 

If you want to get involved in the day to day & make an active business buy a distressed property cash, renovate it & refinance.

You actively participate if you are involved in meaningful management decisions regarding the rental property.I guess you can still have Management in place and still participate but I'd double check with your accountantthx,Chris

It seems as though you could work with the Seller (based on what you said, seems like a good person that wants to do right by everyone involved) to have him/her provide your lease (with the current owner's information substituted for your own) for tenant signatures, set to take effect once the current lease expires.

Back home, that type of property would involve a lot of rehab and that is not something I am very familiar with.

I'm doing a few things in my personal finances to clean up a costly divorce I paid for with a second mortgage and credit cards (0% promos).

Cleaning, decluttering, and staging will help tremendously.

The unpaid November rent will be the previous owner's loss, and won't involve you.

One example recently, I had an issue with a tenant breaking multiple house rules (smoking, party, extra guests, late check out) and causing damage and excessive clean up.