It might be a good idea to bring your contractor with you to look at the property and get a quote to fix it to your standards so you know what you are dealing with before you buy it.

So, why would you want to enter such a deal as a seller?

I used it to purchase an off market deal and am about to refinance to pay it off and pull out equity (550K total). 

I am based out of Los Angeles and I’m working on a long distance BRRRR deal in the hilltop area of Columbus, OH.

You focus on finding deals and let your team do the work in their specialties.For flippers I think your #1 job and #1 relentless focus should be finding deals   

Had a pretty good experience in their "Challenge" ($7K) program that deals only with single-family investing.However, later that year, we upgraded (in theory, and in dues) to their "Preferred" (or "PIG") membership, so that we could invest (passively) in multifamily deals. 

You don't need a reason, though it sounds like you have plenty.Do yourself a favor: buy "Every Landlord's Legal Guide" by NOLO.

We have never used real estate attorney for dirty work regarding foreclosures or pre-foreclosures, other than to close the deal and/or deal with any issues that may come up in a contract. 

They need your dead leads when you can not get the deal w/I your margins.  

being new, the further away you are from the deals, the greater chance of something happening and you not being able to handle it correctly.