I would then be relying on my management company to effectively market the units and fill them ASAP but if the units are in dire need of major repairs... that's a double whammy because I don't have any extra cash flow to cover those repairs.

He said they aren't in dire straights or desperate for the income, but it's a fundamentally different version of their 'golden years' than they had originally planned.The Lyft driver proactively said that if he could go back in time, he would have invested his nest egg primarily in real estate, in stead of stock.

Worse case, I'd go into an Inland or NNN portfolio if we are in dire straights. 

Out of the three Solano County cities you mentioned - Vallejo, Fairfield, or Benicia - my gut feel is that Vallejo will cash flow best. but a a cost due to the challenges of crime & the economy there.In general, the safest & nicest area of Vallejo is known as "Glen Cove" - if you look at google map, it is bordered on the North by 780, on the West by 80, on the East by Benicia State Park, and on the South by the Carquinez Strait.

I can totally understand why someone would be upset if I was willingly taking advantage of people and going behind their backs to make a profit, but when everything is honest, disclosed, and I am helping someone in dire need (motivated seller or distressed property for example) to sell their home fast for a profit, and helping an investor make some money, why shouldn't I be paid for my hard-work, time, and effort?

Multiply that by 12 and this owner is in some dire straights.  

I love painting my risk situations as dire as they can be -- easier to feel more comfortable with the end result. 

Then there are those on SSDI & from the few I've met it's nothing more than a life sentence of dire poverty.

Austin is in dire need of folks to fill the available jobs. 

Unless you're in dire straights I think "subject to" is an awful thing for sellers.Basically your credit rating is held hostage/under the control of another person and that person has lots of risks.