Financing problems can delay settlement 30-60 days and give the person an out for cold feet.

Once he sees how to minimize or mitigate the risks while still producing income / ROI, I think he'll come around more quickly than if you attempt to acquire income property in your own name putting your personal and marital assets at risk.My $0.02 ...

@Ritch Bonisa thank you for the input, that's true I didnt put the codes into consideration, the house been empty for 5 plus years, who knows what's not in code, plus applying permit time around the area is a pain also, it could delay rehab time and increase holding costs. 

In your scenario, (check @Jerry Padilla's link to confirm) if the goal is to minimize down payment, FHA might be the better route. 

You should put a copy of that with all of your offers and hopefully get the owner believing you can close.Another thing you should consider doing before you start is finding an office location that is convenient and has a minimal of distractions.  

And, there are some owners that are just trying to delay the foreclosure process as long as possible.There are also some agents that are notorious for having listings that are drive by only, no contact with agent.

@adam johnson thank you for that very "full" answer,  my gut was feeling much like this was a minimal purchase.  

Your equity seems minimal. 

I have minimal bills and responsibilities, just me and my dog.

Interested in doing a flip in the next few months.On for example, a 400,000$ purchase here in suffolk county NY, there could be greater than $15,000 closing costs.Is there a way to minimize these costs to minimize breakeven -- would paying cash eliminate a lot of the lender fees -- is it even worth it?