There is no mortgage or deed of trust with this note.

So you have to be patient and persistent when it comes to establishing relationships and building trust. 

I was referred tenants by my financial advisor who I trust and is a great individual.

So, what we are working with are 1) contractors we trust that did our home gutting and remodel 2) Aprox $125k to use 3) Availability to use my VA if need be due to refinancing the current home out of it recently We happened upon a REO owned by the bank we use that we’re getting interested in.

I don’t trust these local banks at all personally, especially considering most of them have changed hands over the last 10 years.  

Trust local professionals.

I primarily use my retirement funds to invest in trust deeds (being a private lender).

There are advantages of having a living trust as a sole owner or co-owner of an LLC is that it allows the grantor to simultaneously manage a business while taking advantage of a trust's flexibility.

Do you have a trusted agent who understands investors?

As for Zillow, don’t trust the Zestimate either.