Follow-up with an attorney if you are concerned about liability.I don't have any direct advice for you without knowing your situation and more details. 

That only leaves you with a few options.Change your buying criteria (price, location, property type, ect...)Stick to your criteria/wait (you will likely be left with the same results for awhile)Find a new approach to find deals (direct mail, REIA groups, working with an agent, ect...)Seems to me if you want to get in the game you will need to change something.

Just never been able to get to the point of paying cash for a home to start flipping. 2nd: After talking to some different prospects, I have been directed here, I was told I can get in touch with individuals that help front the funding for flipping homes. 3rd: The Question.

I am direct residential lender, and when I read about how transactional funding works, I get stumped on some issues I would love clarified.1.

As Alpesh mentioned, if you could be a bit more specific - I can definitely try and point you in the right direction.

@Scott EdwardsI think part of the reason this isn't usually taken into direct account is everybody's tax situation, bracket, etc. is different, so it's very difficult to estimate how owning a particular property will impact their tax liability for the year.With that being said, it's a definite benefit of owning real estate and more sophisticated rental property calculators do show the tax benefits (like depreciation and mortgage interest deductions).

You should be able to calculate this, and if not, there are calculators to help you with this exercise.I think direct investment in real estate beats peer-to-peer lending. 

Just kiddin'.Anyone going through foreclosure has several things going on: 1) They are under a lot of stress, 2) Everybody is mailing to them and knocking on their door, 3) They are embarrassed, 4) They feel helpless, 5) They have the belief that winning the lotto will bail them out at the last minute, 6) It's the bank's fault, 7) This can't be happening to them, 8) They don't want to sell, 9) The house (even though it has a leaky roof and hasn't been kept up) is worth more than market price, 10) Believe you are there to take advantage of them, 11) Believe the government should do more to protect them, 12) Believe that their payments reduce the principal directly proportionate to their payment (Have no concept of compound interest, what Einstein called "the 8th wonder of the world"). 13) They can file a Chapt 13 bankruptcy at the last minute and keep the house if they have income, 14) They will wait until the day before the sale and call you if none of the other solutions work.Your opening comment should be " I buy houses in the area and I was wondering if you or someone you know might be interested in selling".

My self-directed IRA is the lender on the refinancing of a property. 

Or does equitable interest not count because it is specifically for closing costs and isn’t attributed directly to the purchase price?