I don't know the odds but somewhere around 1 out of 100+?

Saraland is hot right now, but the rental market is very odd.

We thought that shifting the property to my name and then go for a secured loan will be our best bet. 

I'll let a contractor weigh in but I'll bet that old vinyl will act as a vapor barrier for your new floor.

(You see,average value of riverside SFHs is currently 150-200k)So I thought,"yea..too good to be true...I bet something is wrong with it."

You could even make a hundred bucks or so by selling on craigslist but if you put it on there for free I bet you could have it gone by the weekend without lifting a finger.

On a sale of that size a partial exchange is probably your best bet.  

It's odd that in Oakland where it's already anti-landlord they are now pushing for harsher rent controls. 

The bank won't/can't tell you and the attorney may or may not talk to you so the seller is your best bet preferably by showing you a copy of the notice they received. 

I may lose $100/month because I didn't include fridges, but consider the cost of just a single eviction, and it's worth it to substantively reduce the odds of dealing with that.Kind of an interesting minority opinion, eh?