Quote from @Tom Hall: My mortgage rate is very high  and I would like to pay some of it off, so that my monthly payments would go down a bit, I dont know if it is financial smart to do it or not?

The seller does get benefits, but they aren't necessarily financial.

@John Friendas  it's close to the 1% rule which is good, but I would still run the financials on it. 

Since then, I've documented the process as a Boutique Hotel investor and have a deep commitment to sharing my knowledge around Boutique Hotel Investing with others who are looking for a path to financial freedom, and Boutique Hotels is the best path to get there in my personal opinion.

2) Subsidizing rents:- S8 and other programs statisitically only train tenants how to be dependent on the free handouts.If you really want to make a difference, try basic financial education for tenants and the financial demographic they come from!

Any additional screenings or criteria should be consistently applied to all applicants to avoid potential discrimination claims.Rental application fraud can be a significant threat to the financial and operational stability of running and operating a property.

This may help with getting your parents to have more confidence in you financially. 

I want to give them the benefit of the doubt they are just struggling with staffing but now have seen some red flags that lead me to believe there might also be some type of deceit/fraud and possible financial trouble.

Just stay flexible and be ready to adapt to market changes or your own financial situation.

So REI in California only makes sense if you've been there since the 70s or 80s OR if you're financially well off and can afford a few million dollar properties.