I know it sounds like it can be pretty intensive with strangers in a house but curious.

I'm trying to help them make some pretty big decisions, and it would be refreshing to hear opinions from outside strangers to the situation.I'll try to keep this to the bare minimum with the facts, but I need to go into some detail to give the full picture.

You need to talk to experts not strangers.

I am no stranger to working.

For a while I've had my place rented out by my two close friends, however one of them recently moved out , and now I'm considering seeking a stranger to move in. 

If it was one tenant, possibly self-serving lying, but seven - not too probable - Occam's razorI do have a hard time believing that 7 people just handed cash over to a stranger they can't even name with no receipt for multiple months.   

Yeah You better believe everything this stranger told you !

I can only imagine the number of anonymous solicitations you’ve received by now @Camille Johnson, from strangers happy to separate you from your money.

But if you're hiring strangers to do the work including managing the project, with the rising cost of materials, involving the city, and contractors generally being in high demand right now, I'd be surprised if you were able to make a lot of (or any really) money on the project right now.

But trust comes first, it will be hard for any investor to part with their money to an absolute stranger unless you want to go the hard money route.