Best case scenario if the figure out a way to shave off a part of the deck.Worst case scenario the neighbor tells you off and at that point you should get some legal advice and exercise what ever right you do have.

I'd also toss in that you want to take a more active role in the community and that him selling this to you give you that chance.Sounds to me like this guy is going to value time and sense of community over dollars and cents...

They will be able to answer your questions and help you get a clearer picture of what a successful deal looks like.Assuming you need financing and you need a developer/operator in order to bring your deal together (which it sounds like), the people who occupy those key roles will make or break your deal and bringing a deal to the table that satisfies their requirements and that they view as a viable deal will greatly advance your learning as to what the critical factors are.Every market will have different dynamics which will affect your build to cap and it will depend on your expectations as well as the expectations of your investors and lender given the market you're operating in.As for stabilization, I typically see 18-24 months budgeted but a good operator can get it done in 12 with proper pre-marketing and solid market dynamics.Get a feasibility study done before you close escrow if you've already targeted a specific parcel.

You can bypass the custodian by setting up IRA owned LLC, in which case all investment as made under the LLC and the custodian is playing passive role in this case, but there must be custodian. 

She didn't like the fact that I wouldn't be the owner of the property and would get non-refundable option consideration money if the T/B doesn't exercise their option to buy.

Do you have the down payment shown or are you doing an exercise to get up to speed and learn?  

I am super excited to be pursuing my dream in the real estate world and I look forward to connecting with all of you and bring value to your businesses.Would love to hear some feedback from you guys on the questions below:-Do you hire an interior designer to work with your GC throughout the project, or do you as the investor fulfill this role?

Given that this is my first investment property (outside of my primary residence), I'm looking to start small to get some experience with the process and taking on the role of landlord.  

He will be in charge of managing the property, where my role will be more hands off.  

When purchasing via a lease option, do you get the seller to sign a option agreement and then record it, and not actually go through the closing process with a title company until you exercise your option years later?