.#4 Practice, Practice, PracticeWalkthrough potential rehab properties (or find properties virtually online) and practice creating detailed scopes of work, quantifying repairs and estimating rehab costs for the projects.#5 Get Your First Rehab ProjectYou can practice all you want, but ultimately you will learn the most about estimating rehab costs by actually rehabbing a house. 

In most states it's virtually impossible to force someone to sell their home so the best you could do is put a lien on the house. 

Once you establish the relationships you can do it virtually, but face to face always helps! 

We have a organization called Columbus 2020...If things get really deep, I use virtual assistants that specialize in research.

This will enable you to use that free time generating, screening and underwriting leads up front, only bringing true opportunities to that operator. 

It is definitely a fine line between helping people and enabling people.

@Russell Brazil  not sure what all the heart ache here or worry is with this stuff virtually every sales contract in every state that i read has a fill in the blanks due diligence clause. 

There are assignment clauses in virtually every legal contract, construction, real estate, beer sales, you name it.

Maybe some sort of partial refinance or equity loan would enable him to “cash out” without actually selling?

Homes in this particular neighborhood have tended to hold their value but have had virtually no appreciation and I believe that will continue to be the case.