I had dreams this was going to be the start of income each month with very little work.

They had the dream (and the tuition money) but didn't have what it takes to make it all happen.Therefore, a mentor is my best advice for you and others in this same situation.

Until the job is done.

Great job on the due diligence or Operational process you have going.  

& track my job costs against each category so I can compare my budget vs actuals and calculate the variances.For example:Electrical Budget: $4,000Electrical Actual: $6,300Variance: +$2,300This process is more tedious because you have to breakdown each invoice or receipt and allocate the costs to each Category, but it really helps you understand where you are spending your money and why you went over budget.Otherwise, it sounds like you are having trouble measuring employee productivity?  

On top of that you have idiots who engage in bid wars and pay retail for a house that has never been inspected (and those are the bidders who will cry foul when they discover totally trashed and destroyed house that will require a full gut job to rehab). 

after alot of procrastinating (like since I started this thread) I was pushed to write a business plan for my dreams in RE and Architdcture.

Good job!

There are often church groups that can help, but he needs to start looking for a new job-he should have done that as soon as he was laid off. 

You will eventually have an issue but if you do a good job it will be few and far between.