If equity exists, you may be willing to purchase the property 'subject to' the existing liens and take responsibility for their satisfaction.If you buy at the foreclosure auction, which should be remembered as the forced liquidation sale of collateral, whether by judicial sheriff sale (or non-judicial trustee sale, in other states), you must perform your own due diligence, including researching title for other senior liens, in addition to valuation, repairs and occupancy status.If the property goes to sale, reverts to creditor (rather than a 3rd party bidder) then that creates a situation whereby the creditor/bank turned owner may sell the asset, but not before.

I want to draft a lease for 3 occupants, report this to the township, and then ammend the lease to add the 4th person.  

Both HomePath (Fannie Mae foreclosures) and HUD (FHA foreclosures) have an initial bidding period for owner occupants before it opens to investors.If you are looking at REO's, I would recommend interviewing some real estate agents who can represent you.  

@Lynda Allison Just a technical point--occupancy is not ownership.  

Hey BP Community,I'm dipping my toes in the apartment water so to speak, and someone brought this deal my way.Here are the numbers:$1.2 million purchaseCurrent occupancy: 58%Units: 64Average Rent Per Unit: $550 (conservative)Area occupancy average (subject property removed): 90 + %Why so many vacancies?

I want to "get out of the rat race" as they say, and I just can't keep running through my head that even only counting half of the rent at full occupancy, this one unit would match my current income level!!

That is:  a property which is intended to be sold for own-occupancy only - at least for some initial period of time.  

I will be moving out officially around the end of August and then renting it out.When should I start advertising it for rental prospects if occupancy isn't until beginning of September?

A financing contract is subject Dodd-Frank on any residence financed by an owner occupant, this also applies to land where a residence may be built..2.

It will make those properties harder to sell and will depress the selling prices.If all you own are SFH that you plan on selling to owner occupants, you may see little or no effect.