I would make a cash offer that includes everything you want to fix, an offer of some money now and yearly installment payments; and a monthly cash flow offer that is higher/closer to what they really want.  

@Daniel Dietz, 1.If you're guy can hang on without selling or do a 1031 then yes, at his passing his heirs will get the benefit of a step up in basis and the tax will disappear.  2.If he sells to you on an installment sale he will incur the tax but it will only come due as receipts of the sale come to him as capital gain income and interest income.  3.If he does a full 1031 exchange and sells for 1100 and buys for 1100 then he defers all tax and you go back to scenario 1.4.

I bought a property where there wasn't a rail installed on a first floor balcony.  

I don't know if I should install lights or just buy a standing lamp.

Drains installed in the patio for "hose down" turnovers.  

Front and back11- secure crawl space, install new hasp and new numeric pad lock 12- install new door bell and chime 13- add new 6x6 gable to front entry will require 2 posts to support gable.

I have had home warranties take almost a week just to get their vendor out the house and then another week to get the equipment shipped in and installed.  

There are way too many crappy installers in Pittsburgh for me to feel comfortable ever contracting out that job with what I can afford to pay for it.As far as the rest of it goes...that's all my wife's job.

I had it installed for about a month.

Installed nice egress windows.