Interested in Small Scale Investment Condo Building in Des Moines

[Jared Stroebele]

Does anyone in the DesMoines, IA  area have experience building investment condos? or building in general?

There are two properties that caught my eye 5590-S-Prairie-View-Dr and 5570-S-Prairie-View-Dr. I am searching for an investment property in the area (live-in if it makes a difference).  I have been looking at properties and have done research into house hacking, flips, buy-and-hold and the BRRRR combination but I have not put any attention into building.  So I guess I was hoping to be pointed to some resources and have a few questions answered.

My thoughts on a simple strategy:

The four unit seems like it would make a good investment.  If I build four units, as condos, depending on how I finance it I would sell 1 or 2 units, keep 1 to live in, and rent the other.

The two unit seems less attractive from an investment standpoint because I would want to keep both live in one and rent the other and lose the flexibility of selling units. 

What due diligence is requires when building new? (What questions should I be asking?)

How much does it cost to build a house? is there a rule of thumb for estimating to give me a quick feasibility? (Maybe an X$/sqft for Des Moines) 

How/where do I start to get actual cost estimates? (Call contractors same as rehabs? Will I need an architect to do drawings? How do I find a contractor with in house architect? is that recommended? )

What are the steps in building a property particularly condos if there are any differences? 

Where can I get financing for a project like this? (Banks, Credit Union, private money (syndication, partnerships),  specific recommendations)

Is anyone doing something similar that I could help with or shadow? 

Is there a specific book recommendation that would help bridge my knowledge gap? 

Sorry about all the questions, and thanks for taking the time to help answer them,

Jared Stroebele