I know that I'll have to wait a little while to be able to get traditional financing.I was thinking I could do an owner occupy deal and live there for another 1-2 years (1 year to finish my lease then present my landlord with my proposal, if she accepts, live there for another year to fulfill owner-occupy terms, and be at my job long enough to get traditional financing.) 

That's probably the only negative I see to the owner being in a foreclosure situation--and if it's not a short sale, you won't have to worry about that (on the flip side, he or she will probably be motivated to accept any offer that they get, so that bodes well, but you may be, or may already be, competing with other offers).Things I would be curious to know about: are all of the utilities separate?

Knowing who negotiates in good faith and who is an a**hole,  knowing who can close and who wont (This extends to accepting offers with financing from certain lenders) all lends weight and credibility to the offer, or detracts from the offer.

Depending on the nature and degree of the repairs the tenant may have claim to an equitable interest in the property which would make things messy and complicated in the event you need to evict.  

Navin Naik Assuming your 'acceptance criteria' is that you decline for evictions, I would decline -- you must send an Adverse Action letter or at a minimum explain this decision is in part based on background information.

I just accepted a new job in Ithaca and I'm going to be relocating to the area from Washington DC.

Hello all,I am a 25 year old from New England who always had a passion for fixing up real estate.I went to a trade school and my father owns a construction company.A few years ago i was involved in a bad accident.To make a long story short i will be accepting a check for $250k in the coming weeks.I would love to get a loan for a rental property and can put a down payment down of 20%.My problem is i cant work in my old field and therefore am not working at this moment.My credit is around 600 right now but i have a few credit cards that are maxed out but in good standing.I plan to pay those  off and expect my credit to rise to over a 640( i lived on those for the past fear years because i was injured)My question-Anyway i cant get approved for a 200k and under mortage with that kinda cash in the bank and credit score?

Where FHA deals can be more difficult, I am having trouble understanding how that alone is preventing your offers from being accepted and, where inventory is very low right now, suspect the $100k approval is what is limiting your choices most of all. 

So timing is every thing if your house is ready for market at 60 days and you get an accepted FHA offer work the buyers inspection and loan process to make sure you have the appraisal dated on day 91 or later. 

If you accept a personal check as that very first payment and it bounces, you now have a signed lease with a tenant who hasn't paid you a dime.