@Mahonri Bussey find a real estate agent to handle the rest of the process at a discounted rate

We talk about FHA+MFR for countless hours each year, but I can count on one hand the number of these I actually do in that same given year in SoCal / Bay Area (eg, excluding rural California).And for that handful, it's typically a slightly different formula:[ FHA + Off Market + Discounted Price + 2-4 unit = win ]Ain't nothing I can do as a mortgage guy to make FHA not FHA except give you pragmatic advice.

So if you're going to go in for a discount it better come along with cash (or at minimum a pre-qual), a quick inspection period, and short closing date.

Guess I'll just have to analyze any deals on their own merits, maintain sufficient margin for safety, and have multiple exit strategies, but that sounds like it will be a lot of work so maybe I should just look for an easier answer from a guru with fancy charts.

The profit margin on this deal is extremely thin and could easily lose money if you do not know what you are doing.

Even an entry level job at a big box store may be enough to at least get you a discount on materials and a great way to network with local landlords and other trades people.

It's not too hard to open a trading account with Charles Schwab and apply to trade on margin.  

Additionally, park may have homes and you may need to add in wholesale value of the homes or may have mortgages that would typically be purchased at a discount.  

The interest rate is a little low for seller finance and if you plan to sell the note, remember that the lower your rate is, the higher the discount will be from your buyer.

Tried outbidding and cutting the profit margin to see if that would work, and it really didn't have the impact we were hoping for.