If you want good contractors out there quickly , pay their price and pay it quickly . 12 months is too long , we can build a 3000 sq ft house ground up in 3 months . 

It’s awesome that you’re diving into real estate and taking the time to build a solid foundation first.

My goal would be to build an investment net with passive income, de-risking the fact that I am the only earner.  

Do the math at a 6% loan rate.There's a reason many apartment buildings have been converted to condos and sold.

Many of those properties were build by my team for investors.

With your costs being less you can invest more into the property to build reviews and get bookings. 

- Are you only looking for 6-unit apartment buildings or another that is 5+ units?

Building a cabin in a tourist destination that does not have easy access to gas or electric.So I will need to run electric line anyway and considering installing underground propane tank, is it worth it?

The contributions are lower so it takes a while to build, but once you do, it's tax-free investing. 

I just acquired one from a PM where they were charging a tenant a resident benefit package and a building protection plan.