But they are getting the advice from people who are either (1) not qualified or experienced enough to rely on their advice (2) biased to some degree, perhaps unintentionally, by their background, business interests, training, etc, or (3) providing advice in a general sense without a thorough understanding of the questioners personal situation or ALL the relevant facts. 

These are some good properties to get, but there are many that sell at market value now in a lot of markets because the banks got smart and knew they needed to do some repairs to sell them at the market price to get most or all of their money back! 

Creative FinancingFinancing can be a challenge in tough economies, but several creative strategies can make deals work: Seller Financing: Negotiate with the seller to finance part or all of the deal, reducing the need for traditional loans.

They are those 18"X24" all yellow or all white signs usually that you see all over town saying "WE BUY HOUSES."

So if that's all you can afford or all the risk you want to tolerate, just start with that. 

This allows you to spread out down payments and use less cash upfront by having the seller finance part or all of the down payment.3.

Buying a random property in OH or AL or KS solely on the basis that it has a lower purchase price than a property in CA just isn't going to get you very far. 

When has there ever been a time that wasn't any or all of those things? 

Would a text message be considered an oral agreement?

They've mentioned they have asthma and allergies and that's why they're upset about have to live in a place that's being repaired, so I've offered to both hold off on the repairs and reduce rent to make up for the condition of the property, I've offered to have a contractor just rough in the drywall so that the studs aren't visible and to encapsulate everything, even though everything in the cavity was removed during the remediation, but they now aren't responding to my texts whatsoever.