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@Bruce Mackay Then what you need is a LOI (letter of intent) or MOU (memorandum of understanding) that spells out the material terms which are not subject to re-negotiation later but which letter/memo is non-binding until a final agreement is signed. 

I always ask for Tax returns for the past 3 years and 3 years of P&L, but often don't see that until You sign the contract.

If there is no for sale sign on the lawn, you'll have to wait until there is.

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And, in the end, sell them.I take care of property management, finding tenants, signing contracts with them, maintenance, repairs, etc.We split everything 50/50, ownership, mortgage, expenses, net cash flow, amortization, capital gains, ...Now there are three points specifically that cause me some headache.

A quick tidbit when selecting a neighborhood or zip to research.

@Drew PoniewazAs George indicated, location is generally not the primary deciding factor when selecting a provider for a self-directed IRA or 401k based retirement plan.This is a very specialty field, with a handful of providers.There are about 3-4 dozen companies that act as custodians, basically processing the investments you direct them to execute on behalf of your IRA account. 

How many evictions have they handled at the property (may speak to tenant selection quality), how many tenants have left mid-lease (also may speak to the quality of the management, bad managers lose good tenants)? 

When it does get signed, that becomes the binding document for the transaction.Regarding commissions; I have seen this in various online confidentiality agreements (CA).