I personally hate when wholesalers play this game and send out daisy chain properties.Wholesalers in my area do this all the time and send out each others deals, etc.I won't even work with them if they aren't in direct control of the deal with the seller.

@Kimi Ho similar to 1031 exchange name change where everything tied with buyer/seller SSN/EIN and you cant mix funds for 2 separate EINs/SSNs , properties needs to have separate account as tax paying entity to county office (i.e. 2 separate tax bills aka 2 addresses).  

So the property was represented as legal duplex by the seller.

You focus on what is the maximum you can spend to make money...and don't negotiate (rationalize) against yourself after you found that number.Second, whether you are the buyer or the seller, you focus on what you need financially first. 

Is the seller interested in financing them?

Start studying as much information as you can about real estate investing.Step 5: Figure out how to live off W (less then you earn)Step 6: Open a savings account and put your savings into it (X+Y+Z)-W= S (Savings)Step 7: Offer to help another real estate investor do anything they need in return for mentoring you.Step 8: Listen to positive people daily who are motivating.

Both seller & buyer were thrilled.

- How do I go about offering a lower price to the seller than what is being asked? 

I requested that repairs be made before closing that would be a long term fix to the foundation issues.At first, the seller tried to pull a fast one on me and push through minor "band-aid" level repairs instead of legitimate long term fixes while feigning ignorance.

The second option is seller financing but I'm not sure how exactly that process works.