But according to our mortgage agent, the only way to do this is to spend years saving up for a 20% down payment on a conventional loan, or get a promotion with a substantial raise, which could also take years.

That point mixed with the owner carrying a large portion at a low rate makes the (potential) deal  seem very enticing.

I'm not allowed to "self promote" so I can only stick to the facts in a post.

@Austin BullSee if you can pick up more overtime at your current job, rather than starting a second job, double your focus and effort where you are and try to get a raise/promotion.

I am not self promoting but the link below is a number of solo podcasts I have done to try to educate people and motivate them to get into commercial RE. 

I was just given a deal in LA where the broker was promoting the fact that rents could be raised $100 with very little work to the units.  

When they are that expensive, they often entice new renters just to fill up so that's possible.  

Cold calling / skip tracing can be enticing because it is cheaper.

The media and news were promoting the broken economy, massive job losses, and a collapsed stock market, but I knew that I was ready to start my pursuit into real estate.

Often posts about funded deals are also removed as too "promotional" Yes, we turn down deals.