The seller states that the tenant has lived there for some time and theyve never had problems with damages or collecting rents.. to me it eould make sense to leave the tenant as the repairs needed would be minimized and there would be no cost to Maret for potential renterz..I don't really have any control over that but I don't want to lose the deal either... how should i proceed??  

With that said any advice on how one should proceed on this potential opportunity ???

With that said any advice on how one should proceed on this potential opportunity ???

What is length of time I can hold the SFH sale proceeds before purchasing another property?

He might agree to consult in helping us estimate the work that will need to be done prior to purchase so we can determine if it is going to be a good property for us.I plan splitting the rent/proceeds w/my son, plus he'll get the realtor commission  [i figure yes, as I would pay it to someone else if he weren't one - but I wonder if there are other thoughts on that]As for my consultant friend, do I pay him a flat fee [if yes, how much is fair?]

If not, just put it under contract and proceed.

Before you proceed with ANYTHING go spend a coupe hundred bucks or whatever and talk to a REAL ESTATE ATTORNEY.

This would give you a little bit of flexibility in the property that you acquire since you could pull out the proceeds from your unit without a tax impact - however you need to make sure that all proceeds - cash and paid off mortgages stay in the exchange and are used to acquire the next property.I would start off with an accountant who specializes in Real Estate taxes and then go to a lawyer to implement the 1031.  

Whats the best way to proceed when a listing agent is delaying responding to an offer, waiting for other prospects to submit. 

If you do that and its the same guy then proceed.