Best case scenario, the cash on cash return will be ~ 25% (taking into account low vacancy rate and minimal repairs).  

of note: I have already indicated that all utilities should be in the name of the tenant.

To me - Nothing can possibly sound good without a price, or at least some indication of motivation.

I am thinking that two prime indicators would be house sales/foreclosure and employment rates.

Hi @Jon Quigley  one of the ways to minimize your risk would be to insert a financing contingency in the contract. 

@Dawn Anastasi yes the couple provided their midwest landlord who I called and got a raving review but it's a private owner so who knows, in retrospect.And they indicated they were staying at Extended Stay America Pasadena since they flew into CA, which struck a chord with me as months ago when I relocated from NYC, I also stayed in Extended Stay America but the one right near Long Beach Airport, until I closed on this house. in retrospect, i realize when i advertised for a housemate on CList months ago, i had initially indicated i stayed at Extended Stay America and had just closed on my home and was looking for a housemate (and found a great one just weeks ago, who is also from NYC but now works for Los Angeles Fire Department and Los Angeles Police Department thru a government contractor. would not put it past these characters to have actually stalked my CList posts and gathered info to use to sugar-coat their story. anyways i dont wanna get my housemate involved as he's new but at least he has connections as far as some of his clients, if it comes to that for whatever it might be worth if things escalate and/or become violent. i'm a very diplomatic person, not sure if that helps in this sutation though =/they offered to pay more rent ($300 more per month) and of course i said no, you need to work on finding a new place better and fast before time runs out for your situation. and in reply they (well the father, he does most the yapping) just asked me to install area rugs which they initially agreed to install in the first place even before 3 kids magically appeared in the picture and now are claiming the rugs will help deaden the sound but that I have to furnish them. guess there's suddenly a few screws coming lose as the act is finally falling to pieces. i mean who in their right mind is going to cater to their 'needs' after being lied to and my signature forged (God knows where else?!).

Please indicate the reason(s) why I should or shouldn't try and also indicate how I should proceed.Thank you for your input!

Some great photos out there that show a great transformation with minimal resources 

You agent should investigate the short sale situation, as to how many mortgages, how many liens, etc. to get an indication of your chance of success.3).

If you just have a couple of hollow sounding tiles, that is not a good indicator of a sewer line leak under the slab.