Maybe finding a balance between cash and financing could be the best approach here.

Some states have licensure requirements for private lenders including California, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, Virginia, Florida, the Dakotas, Vermont... that may not be an inclusive list.

This might buy you time so you can either save the money to pay it off or to find an alternate way to finance that balance . 

I use a hard money lender, where they typically require 10-15% down payment on purchase of an investment property, and they fund the rehab.

Tell them your purchase price, work that needs to be done, and ARV as you're vetting them.Documents Needed for a Hard Money Loan might include:LLC DocumentsYour Credit ReportCompany Bank InformationYour IDSigned Purchase ContractRehab Budget Track Record of SuccessEvery hard money lender has different requirements, so some of these may vary.

There is a primary outstanding mortgage on it (unknown outstanding balance, terms, etc.).

But you can't assume that people who do those tasks required in living are marketable skills.There are better ways to assess ones integrity than their receiving some benefit.

Agents are typically required to show up with the client at the first appointment with the builder - if they miss that, they can often be cut/pushed out of the deal.

You do need to have everything that is charged for itemized and  send that letter showing deductions within the time frame required by your state.

We have lenders that allow you to defer payments during rehab faze so you dont have to make payments but most lenders do require IO payments.