Red-Necks on UTV's were a disaster relief force to the effect of about 100,000x what the "command & Control" capacity of Big Government was. 

Bay Park / Clairemont / Carlsbad / Oceanside are all top-tier markets that fetch top dollar (see the Yellow & Red).Move your search slightly inland, or further down South and inland, in order to get something done for 1/2 the price, with similar rents (not quite as high, but definitely not 50% less like the purchase price would be)

Folks feel less rich and pull back when stocks and their 401k’s are flashing a bit of red.

One of the biggest red flags I have as a lender (who lends my own money as well as secondary market loan) is when a rookie tells me there goal is to buy 10, 20, whatever properties in the next year. my next question is how many do you own currently?

3-Any red flag in our current structure?

I wasn't sure if asking my FHA lender about switching it to commercial will raise red flags.

Yes, the contractors were bad people, but there were hundreds of red flags waving in your face and you ignored them all. 

On the other hand if they are a sponsor that is experienced in stopping a skin in the game, that's a huge red flag for me.c) how open to scrutiny are they?

Quote from @Bruce Woodruff: Quote from @Peter Mckernan:Up front (First Contact) Red Flags - 1) Everything should be in writing and very detailed 2) There should be a very specific Scope Of Work3) They should not ask for much upfront $$, certainly no more than 10% - if even that.

This is all changing very soon with the construction of the Foulger Pratt's new "WestEnd Alexandria" Landmark mall redevelopment, a new 4 million square foot mixed-use redevelopment, including a new 1.1 million square foot Inova medical center already starting, with completion set for 2028.The development notably won the Red Clay Development of the Year award.On top of the +2,000 healthcare worker jobs the development will immediately bring to the area upon completion, the 120,000 square feet of office space will also bring a large number of jobs to the west end of Alexandria.