For those that think there is no money to be made during a recession, look no further than John Templeton.In the words of Jim Rohn, "The next 10 years will look about like the last 10 years - opportunity mixed with difficulty."

He has had difficulty renting it and when it sits vacant for any period of time it gets vandalised.

If it's an illegal apartment, that could explain some difficulty in finding good info.Other wise, good luck to you on this first call, and congratulations for getting out there and doing it!

I tend to be pretty comfortable in my own skin within this asset class.

I was under the impression that most conventional lenders need that equity in there as a cushion for them, while HML guys prefer the "skin in the game" as a means of motivation.Nathan--what you stated is exactly the info I am looking to get at our meeting.  

Finally, I know the laws have changed on selling a property on a lease to own / owner financing, but wondered if anyone in South Carolina or local areas were still doing lease to owns or owner financing and if so how difficult is it these days and who if anyone do you use to service your loans?

Due to the higher cost and difficulty of buying through an LLC, I think I will probably just go the insurance only route for now and move it into an LLC later as circumstances change. 

I've read about many horror stories by some who used Hubzu's closing company since they offer it as a cost savings, and those people reported having a lot of difficulty working with the overseas representatives that will then handle that closing.

The lender is much more likely to approve the loan assumption if you are bringing real money to the table and have skin in the game (even if it's someone else's skin).  

This usually leads to better pricing but adds challenges like negative cash flow and difficulty with financing.Both can be very profitable.