Aren't you assigning the contract to him (or whoever your buyer ends up being)?

If you do all this and the numbers (purchase plus repairs plus wholesale fee) Aren’t 70 percent or below ARV, it’s not a deal and you need to drop it.Most wholesalers overestimate ARV, underestimate Repairs.

Hello BiggerPockets people,I am looking for some advice and help trying to find a education course.

That's harder and more time consuming.I have not taken her class, but I've listened to some of her podcasts and read some of her stuff and while perhaps a little expensive looks like excellent info for Florida... https://www.facebook.com/QueenOfTaxDeeds/ I'm sure there are others who charge more and know less.I would probably not invest education money in any of the nationwide type gurus that come through town teaching tax lien investing. 

How aren't people doing it when I see people talking about using a hard money loan or private lending for their down payment?

Photos are ok, but they really aren't needed because if I run my numbers and think the property is worth pursuing I am going to want to see it in person.

If property owners are not using an architect at this stage, are they simply making a submission based on an educated guess as to how much it will cost to provide the space needed?   

You'll just have to be patient when looking as there aren't a lot that pop up and they go fast!

Now all of them own houses and aren't afraid to tackle both the big and small projects. 

So owners aren't typically open to financing deals at the same rates banks are loaning at?