It's also about a 15 minute drive from my primary and I can easily swing by to attempt any repairs, etc. 

There will always be new tenants, so don't worry about the turnover, there won't be any turnover if your rental is destroyed beyond repair. 

There are additional costs up front in purchasing and you must hold back reserve funds to insure you have the cash for emergency repairs. 

It is a bank REO bought at auction by the bank for $355k.So, live in flip:$360k ish offer, about $30k in repairs probably, worth $440k ARVSell primary:$480k (split the redfin/Zillow estimate) - $224k remaining loan (I will miss the low mortgage of $1650/mo)Worth it?

I need to find a foundation specialist who can look at this soon (before my inspection contingency expires) to determine how big of an issue it is and if it is possible to be repaired. 

You'll want to be sure that you know what their damage is before buying because when they come to do the inspection, the owner frequently has to make the repairs.

-The house Is in New York has- he has a fire extinguisher company and won't list it because he actually services many of the real estate companies and is afraid to favor one or the other and inturn lose a client- he has nine houses in Pennsylvania - original loan was 660k 760k if I remember correctly - has paid 250k- has all floors ( basement, 1st and 2nd) rented only top floor has a lease total rent colle is 5500- supposed market value is 1.1 million - he's willing to take 960k- might be open to terms since he's already renting.As long as he keeps the title-sounds like the house doesn't need many repairs but i have a friend that is a contractor and he can Help me assess any repairs Hes a savvy new yorker so  I rather give him options instead of just 1 cash offerCan anyone help me figure this out ?

Or just pay the repair cost when something breaks?

It seems like the trend is to make offers waiving the inspection contingency or having a short inspection contingency period, which makes it almost impossible to get a good idea on what repairs are needed and how much it will cost before I'm committed to the deal.

If you are selling it you would want to make all of these repairs (and more) anyway to get top dollar.