A partial exchange can work very well if your profit is high and you want to decrease the morgage or pull out some cash and still get the tax benefit on part.BTW - I get the feeling that you're pretty savvy on this but it bears mentioning that these two requirements for a successful exchange are only part of a very intricate process with several other requirements that have to do under the direction of a qualified intermediary.  

So I want to get to the decision-makers without necessarily revealing the entire topic so I can at least get a direct refusal, instead of someone who decides not pass on the message as they benefit from the property remaining as it is currently, or in the future, and I keep  wasting time on the property anyway.   

.So estimated values is 160k, outstanding loan amount is 96K, so at this price the home is a 60%, now everywhere i read the benefits for the owner to go with pre-foreclosure is to safe credit and walk away with cash. so in order for the owner to walk away with cash i will have to buy it for more than 96k, and it wont leave me room for repairs, interest and fees of hard money etc.  

I would like to rent out for at least one year for all of the tax benefits that come from waiting over a year.

You've enjoyed the depreciation tax benefits for 10 years, but now you're ready to sell it.You sell the property for 150K and the loan payoff is 50K, leaving a simple 100K difference.What is the total taxable amount from the sale, assuming standard depreciation was used?

I would appreciate any advice anyone can give on benefits of one over the other.  

Some benefits of getting your license are that you can:1) Get access to the MLS and new properties hitting the market before investors without their license2) When you sell the property you save on the sales commission you would normally pay your listing agentYou don't need a license though.

The LLC pays down the Loan over time so C gets interest and return of principal, and A & B get benefit of controlling more property than they could without C's loan. 

Most people can't do all of these things well right off the bat.If you can become an expert in one helpful area and then partner with an existing operator you will benefit twice - once from your deep knowledge of a certain aspect of the business, and again from working with an operator who as already made the rookie mistakes.  

This bulletin is related to death of obligor - CFPB Bulletin 2013-12I believe that the CFPB would be a good route to pursue should the OP not get anywhere with her efforts but, I'm just not sure SII rules would be of much benefit.