They foolishly think they need to keep the rents low to hold onto "good tenants".

This late in the season, it would be a challenge to find a group of four students who would be ideal tenants.  

I have seen folks try for years to find these mythical private lenders and never do a deal because they can't raise a dime.what the OP is looking for is an asset based lender.. and those are not very common anymore.. especially if you have to find one on the internet means you don't have a track record and have little to no chance of finding anyone who is going to 100% your deal.. unless its just such a low LTV that they are making the loan with a better than 50% chance of owning it when the borrower can't pull it off because the borrower is not experienced and can't execute.  

I've read about an 8-11% discount from the listed price, as well as going as low as 15%, primarily on properties that are fresh on the market.

Feel free to reach out to me with some questions, I am not a seasoned vet, but have been in the industry for a while with some knowledge.  

@Christine Mwai I actually did read through your post :)  Glad you are getting the issue resolved.Like many seasoned LLs noted on the post, I am also not comfortable letting tenants take care maintenance items that would affect property values. 

I am no expert, but what I do not see in San Diego is how we get from the present extremely low inventory levels (especially on the coast and the lower priced $800k and below market) to an excess inventory level which I believe would have to be a precursor to any significant price drop.

I share your concern for market timing so would look forward to hear from people more seasoned.

You have to think like a farmer and create Seasonal and Monthly Cash Flow and almost forget about the dream of eventually realizing that long term gain in those rentals.

I have discussed the in's and out's of rents under the 650 mark with a friend of mine that use to own several low-end properties in Covington.