They still have to load up, drive, find parking, etc.  

I've got to replace about 40' of sewer line out to the street at my rental in Orland Park.

They will park a Harley in the living room.

I believe when adding a unit you will need to show you have 1.5 off-street parking spaces for each unit.

An old apartment building that had a vacant lot which was used for parking.

To me the quadplex would be dual purpose, while you are not living there it serves as a reliable stream of income, once you move there, you could live in 1 of the units while you build your permanent home, and you could also use it for when your family comes over for large gatherings.A 2nd option might be to build an RV park, Unless their are zoning restrictions, you should be able to build one fairly inexpensive, with a septic system and either public water or a well, you can keep your costs to a minimum by doing gravel roads, which are easier to remove later if you don't want them. 

The lot has about 20 parking spaces on it and is being used by a restaurant that shares the driveway with it. 

I've worked in insurance for over 20 years and I've never see it be this hard to get routine coverages.

Another thing to do is to touch base with some of the mobile home parks and mobile home dealerships in the area.

I would guess rents are low compared to sales prices, because every local is probably parking their cash in real estate if they have cash, before it is worth nothing.Also many countries have no leverage or no leverage for foreigners, so cash only game.