I'm a twice-Emmy-nominated investor!

Normally they look at nominal only.

That could be achieved at a nominal cost.

If you are not experienced at doing title searches, my advice is to find a local attorney or title agent who will take a quick look for a nominal fee before you bid on the property. 

@Jason Nguyen In my experience with a home warranty, everything has to be working at the time of possession, there is generally a high deductible, and they only give nominal coverage if it goes out. 

Joists framing into the side of a wood girder shall be supported by approvedframing anchors or on ledger strips not less than nominal 2" x 2" (51 mm x 51 mm).

You need a place to live, down payment is nominal (because of your savings/stocks), ease of entry into the market and local.

I would also have to keep it insured for a nominal amount, probably $500 a year.

That will allow you to open escrow, form the new entity, and then assign to, or nominate the new entity as the buyer.  

So rather than letting them fall apart, I could step in and be able to offer them a real offer that they could use to go and maybe downsize a bit or put a down payment down on a smaller place that's more fitting.The idea is to buy the house at a good deal and be able to come away with as little money out of pocket as possible.Home Value is $120kRegular mortgage: $96K (80% of $120k) (Purchase$84k;repairs$3k;Taxes/fees$9k)Down Payment: $19.2k (20%)Purchase Price: $84kSeller Carry: $12kSeller would walk away with $72K in the bank and the $12k carry + a nominal interest would be paid back in 3-5 years.In the end after paying the back taxes and doing some minor repairs I would be able to walk away with only a few thousand dollars out of pocket to own the place.