@John Wallace This is in relation to the deductibility of interest on the borrower's individual income tax return as an itemized deduction (Schedule A).If the proceeds from an equity loan are used to purchase another investment property, the interest will be deductible against rental income.We have to apply the tracing rules when determining the deductibility of interest payments.

@Joanna Lenn The general rule is that putting appreciating property (e.g. rental real estate) inside of a corporation, whether S Corp and C Corp, is a no no. 

When performing a quick preliminary screening on those websites (i.e. to exclude obvious bad deals), do you usually use the 50% rule (or similar % rule) to estimate expenses?

This has been known to cause disagreement on projects because it can be viewed as subjective - what the GC may think is 50% complete, you may think otherwise, hence why I mention communication and building relationships is key. 

I can get a 1300sq ft house done for 50-60k hired out, only cosmetics with new kitchen and baths. 

My total payment is around $723 - MORTGAGE ($640) +TRASH ($33) + WATER ($50). 

So I'm looking to get some 50/50 partnerships going, where they provide the down payment, and I do the rest.

Thank you all for making me aware of the rules in California.

And THEN we split 50/50??

Sounds like you'd be doing better than the 1% rule and could potentially have a small down payment.