But just because there are other ways to skin a cat doesn't mean this is a bad one.

And there is delayed financing, that's when you purchase with cash and you can cash out right away, but not to exceed your purchase price, so again that's not what you are doing here.It makes my skin crawl when investors work with crappy loan officers that don't understand REI and get crappy advice.  

Otherwise, see what you are able to afford financially, and possibly put more skin in the deal for a down payment to buffer your equity position.Also I'd recommend making a plan as to what you are expecting Real Estate to do for you down the road, derive a road map, and have an exit strategy.Best of luck to you @Alan Ferrante!

I grew a thick skin right quick.

When you're new with no experience, It will be extremely hard to find anyone that will go into business with you if you have no skin in the game, and you don't know enough buyers and sellers to be an efficient wholesaler. 

He has an eviction in his name currently from 2010, but all the positives (1) solid income (2) stable job and (3) glowing current landlord reference are telling me yes.  

baking soda + hydrogen peroxide 3% + laundry soapy solution seems to work best to neutralize the skunks secretions from hard surfaces (and pets fur), spot test first though.for human skin, tomato sauce or ketchup helps neutralize more gently. 

Then I've also had the situation where I've called the current landlord, got a glowing reference, then called the one prior and was told they were the most HORRIBLE tenant ever. 

The problem is that a landlord that is having difficulties with a bad tenant will give the most glowing reference if they have a chance of getting rid of them.Think about it for a minute, you have a tenant, they are always late paying, they owe part of last month, and a new landlord phones up asking for a reference. 

If you have thin skin where you're going to take things personally, its not the best business to be in.