For myself, I would never pay retail for the house I eventually move into.

One common theme amongst the new institutional buyers I've seen is that they ask for inspection/due diligence periods that rival retail homebuyers.

So, if you plan to assign, you'll have to make those intentions known to the lender, and they may very well refuse to agree to allow the sale if they know that.But, if you're planning to purchase from a homeowner (a retail sale), you are most certainly allowed to include verbiage that gives you the right to assign.

Maybe sell the retail unit to the tenant?

I don't know if any of the times it has transferred hasn't been due to a bankruptcy liquidation.Me personally I would love if it could be turned into some sort of a retail mall center or condos that highlight the historic features.

The area has some foot traffic from people visiting a handful of restaurants and bars and small retailers in the area.I am comparing a property like this with ones that are a mile or so away that have small parking lots in front.

An investor will pay them less than a retail buyer.

But the other 40 out of that 100 Bob, they will be best served by a retail listing.

maybe when inventories are more "normal" and demand isn't spurred on b/c of the unusual circumstances (low mortgage, low inventory, high demand - hedge, small investors, & retail monies), i will be able to see more clearly.

definitely make use of gov sites to help you provide more insight into areas:census data- zipskinny has some interesting stats based on census- go straight to census site for data- neighborhoodscout is another resource- local gov site may have more stats about neighborhood and demographicsschool district data- find out school districts in the area and look up related local gov website for stats- check out greatschools.com and similar sitespast sold data- the usual: connect w/a realtor- review zillow on past solds for your target property profile- trulia can provide some more insights into areas like zillow doesrental comps- check rentometer- craigslist- local realtorgoogle maps- cash for gold sites, payday sites- affluent supermarkets, restaurants- public transittake into consideration how proximity to certain retail biz or transit can be desirable or influences the local areaNY is a cramped place to evaluate neighborhood on just google map factors listed above alone... i know there are various neighborhoods and depending on what block or side of the tracks, values can go up or down.