If preparing short term, worst case, consider investing in property that may be leased to locals long term when the refineries go on hiatus.Happy Investing!

The creative strategy I came up with is: 1) My VA friend is looking to find a place of his own. 2) he can apply for a VA loan which is 0% down, 100% financing, no PMI. 3) he can house hack a 4 unit property and live in 1. 4) I can put together the deal and manage the property. 5) SPLIT 50/50 PartnershipQUESTION: Form an LLC PARTNERSHIP?

It also helps if you are prepared before you hire cold callers such as a great list, systems and tools, and budget.

I want to be prepared and have everything tee'd up once I'm able to find a good deal, however I also want to be mindful of the lender's time and don't want them to feel like they've wasted time working with me if I'm not able to do anything until early next year. 

This way your equity even is giving you a return.Once your portfolio reaches critical mass, or you hit your target numbers or cash flow you can transition over to paying down debt to prepare for the final distribution phase.However, people need to retire, or go full time, at some point this is called your distribution phase, so when that time comes be sure the properties are paid off by that time to maximize cash flow in retirement.A great book on this topic and more is Gary Keller's The Millionaire Real Estate Investor.

Beyond that I have gone back to listen to every single podcast and learn from others experience to better prepare me and finally got past the fear and bought my first property a little over a year ago and now looking to buy my second & third very soon.

I am open to any other creative ideas?

I have no pressing reason to sell or to keep renting it, kind of neutral about the whole thing.Both these options seem to lack creativity but figured I would post and get some other insight from everyone. 

How could I prepare or what are some resources I should consider watching/reading to prepare to negotiate for seller finance?

I've been trying to find a team to invest with for years now and I think I found the platform to find a team or do it on my own with some creative financing.