I will be able to build my rental business much more quickly then if I had to put 15-20% down on each house.I hope everyone that reads this post will be able to use the financing techniques I used to help grow their business using $10k to get a $50k line of credit!

I will be able to retire at that point and would like to have an alternate plan since I will be retiring young.I am seeking help from experienced investors on the site.  

Are there alternative courses of action that we could have taken?

The only options are for me to wait around for months and persuade the seller (the bank) to file a variance with the local zoning commission, and hope that it's approved, or, i'll need to find alternative financing since no conventional mortgage lender will finance this property. 

I would imagine that getting a professional photographer to come in, take a large number of quality photo's, and utilize lighting techniques would pay dividends in regard to increasing interest in properties and the price it ends up being rented for.Does anyone have opinions on using a professional as opposed to taking pictures yourself? 

Word's walk and money talks.I read some of this thread but it started getting too heavy.The reality is at the end of the day buyers can choose to accept the terms of the seller or the person offering the deal, reject it outright, or offer an alternative they feel comfortable with.If a market is super hot and a buyer wants to take a chance it's their call with their cash.

Alternatively, with a double close, you actually purchase and close on the property and then sell it to an investor.

Can you find alternate financing?

With bio-intensive gardening techniques one can plant a lot of food on 1/4 to 1 sunny acre of land with far more yield than commercial growers can do.

I am sure @Brian Gibbons could comment here and probably give you a very different  view than I have.Now if you are not talking about a sandwich lease and just a basic lease with an option for you to buy, that is a sound technique.