That will tap out my liquid assets but I see a lot of potential for buy/rent/hold in this neighborhood.Hard money lenders seem like a sucker's game but I don't have experience in that world and would appreciate input.

Hi Dan,Real estate is fast-paced game and you need to be able to submit your offers quickly and confidently without waiting around for an inspector or a contractor to walkthrough the property and give you an estimate.Contractors are extremely busy right now, and it often takes several days (or even up to a week) to get an estimate back.You obviously can't wait a week in order to make an offer on a property, so you really need to be able to put together an estimate yourself without a contractor so you can submit an offer and get the property under contract before your competition.Unfortunately, if you don't have any experience with construction costs it can be nearly impossible to confidently put together an estimate, so here is the process I recommend for learning the process of estimating rehab costs:#1 Read 'The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs'First, you need to build a foundational knowledge of construction, inspecting properties and putting together a detailed SOW.JScott's 'The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs' is a great resource for new rehabbers to learn how to Estimate Repair Costs on 25 common rehab repairs.https://www.biggerpockets.com/store/the-complete-g...#2 Explore Lowes and Home Depot to Learn About Material PricingTake a tour through Lowes and Home Depot (or their websites) and look at finishes materials and fixtures that you will consider using in your rehab projects.

The name of the game is to disclose, disclose and then disclose. 

I’m typically a flipper but I want to start adding rentals to my portfolio to play the long game.

We basically negotiate it with transparency explaining to the other realtor involve our intentions were to repair this home.

If after considering the exit strategy, if the buying and holding costs make sense according to my payout goal, then I am game.

IMO, full transparency is always in the best way to go.

so is it like skin in the game to make sure the person signing the contract is invested in the deal and once were at the closing table it will be put toward closing costs?

You're definitely ahead of the game getting into this field this young!

My partner and I are looking to launch an LLC and are hoping to obtain professional advice from someone in the game.