I recently put an application in with a mortgage broker and they said they are confident they can arrange finaincing but are going to charge 4 points worth of fees, which I find to be extremely high.

And doing so brings liability, even if the private note was in default, it is in connection with an installment sale arrangement, the buyer walks and the deal is off, the property is returned in lieu of full payment, even in Texas so it becomes an issue of breach of contract more than any credit issue.

While arranging and setting up a trust shows some rudimentary estate planning, it certainly doesn't eliminate anyone from being or becoming a motivated seller.

You may, however, arrange to meet with the tenant of record now, address the issue at hand, and talk with them about a move-out plan... anything is negotiable.

The fact they were upfront about the arrangement is a good sign to me.

Chris knew the seller was under a deadline due to arrangements made with the homeowner of the property and told the seller that the closing could happen in 2 weeks.

If I can't get enough time the first time round (playing the uninterested party when others are looking at the same property), I'll come back later to view again, and try to arrange to have no one else seeing it, or do it at a weird time.Size it up, get to know what to expect and what to not expect!

This is always true but more so if you're considering a heavy value-add: make sure the sponsorship group has demonstrated success delivering on this type of project. 

The only thing on your list where I could see a problem is if you have a set time they need to be there and you set the appointment, they may already have meetings (ie your example of having someone there from noon-4 to accept a delivery-ask them to arrange a time that works). 

Your proposed arrangement will prevent you from charging points with each deal, unless you have an arrangement in the note to charge these periodically.