Agent keeps saying they spent a ton of time showing, marketing etc. on the property and so they want to get paid for it.What is the best solution for me at this point?

You need to make sure the buyer has everything they need that is expected from you.To the buyer, your responsibility is finding off-market deals with enough meat left on the bone for everyone to make money.Usually... per definition MLS deals are where sellers are that want market value for their house (yes I said usually).It is usually a waste of time for everyone involved when you go the MLS route.Also you will lose the credibility with your buyer. 

This is the meat of the discussion.

The Book on Flipping Houses -by Jay Scott is another meat and potatoes BP book.

It should get you close to 2k mo in rent as well...but in MUCH more landlord friendly environment.Put a HELOC on it then you have a decent war chest if property values drop or you come across more deals.CA has become to anti landlord for it to make sense to me at least, but fantastic for primary for the foreseeable future.Happy to go over numbers if you want and share my experience in Kansas City MO...

Is there enough meat on the bone for both of you to make it worthwhile?

If I can get a property for a price under assessed it usually has good meat on the bone at the end of the project.

You'll never have a problem finding buyers if there's "meat on the bone."

But yeah the one thing that will keep me at hotels over air bnb are the rewards and status points...i'm a points whore and I don't care who knows it.

All I would do is record my memorandum of contract, tell everyone that looks that there is a signed sales contract out there......then disappear off of the face of the earth for a while and make them come find me.     At