If the house is owned out right, you could do seller financing, and buy it at his price, but on your terms, which would mean the house would have to cash flow.If it's a motivated seller, and they want out, perhaps you can do a subject-to and take over.

I don't know CA law and I'm no attorney, but it seems to me that your "I Buy Houses" kind of advertising is not advertising brokerage services, so it may not have to be subject to all of the rules.

But a little search on the borrower's many varied businesses and LLCs, all supposedly previously run out of the subject property, made me think I would stay far away.

Would the typical exit strategy for a subject to be a flip or if you had a long term rental could you refi at a certain point to transfer the loan to your name?

The comps I find are usually literally within rock throwing distance from the subject property.It may be different out there in Florida, but a couple miles in AZ can mean the difference between a $50,000 home and a $5,000,000 home.

Yet, I had several calls for showings where the flip subject would come up, several times I was asked about the much lower sale that same year.

Search here "Sub-To" and read up on the process and issues.You buy "subject to" the existing loan.

I just wrote a blog post on this subject.

I can point you in the direction of the two most knowledgeable guys on this subject ...

Also, @Brian Burke , @Bryan Hancock and @Will Barnard have all done syndications, written on them, and there's podcasts from them discussing the subject.