I live in Phx,az and recently friend of mine sold his bank (ex bank of america) literally as is and profiteed $300k  , he purchased it right out cash last year (I think) and it was in real bad shape in a shady part of...

If not the county should be close to auctioning it off if they haven’t auctioned off the liens already.). 

I have a house close to Wichita Falls Texas and I live about 8 hours away from the property.

My goal this year is to buy a rental property that I can lease as soon as I close or after some minor repairs.

As the other somewhat knew what i was talking about but referred it as a Note Sale!

The sales pitch seemed like exactly what I need, by design I know.

When prices compared to rent were more affordable, I thought the 50% rule was conservative in San Diego but I no longer believe this to be the case. 50% rule is fairly close easy predictor. 

Just closed on my first property in Denver and am planning on Managing this myself. 

You would want an closed end second mortgage instead of a HELOC for a long term cash use like a down payment.

I don’t charge anything until the closing with all funds being escrowed by the title company/attorney.