The end goal is to have a piece of land with multiple houses: one for my growing family but also a home for my mother in law.My mother in law has agreed to foot the money on a new property/land up front and when ready we can buy land from her to build/develop etc. 

Make sure any lease agreement you use complies with Arizona's landlord-tenant laws, including required disclosures (like bed bug information, for example).If you're unsure, consulting with a local real estate attorney to review the agreement can provide peace of mind and ensure you're fully protected.

Its not as simple as using eviction law even after you closed and now are the owner. 

You can find SF properties that already have in law suites, garage units, etc, and now legally rent those, so it should increase the appraised value significantly.

In US tax law, the depreciable lifespan of an asset is defined by its MACRS classification which stands for “Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System.”Under MACRS, depreciable assets are assigned to different classes, with each class having a specific recovery period.

These are great places to invest where prices and rents are favorable as well as the landlord laws. 

I am guessing stricter privacy laws can make this difficult.

Eventually I want to get into single family and multi family rentals.As far as effort or work on the fixers;  my brother in law is quite handy and my next door neighbor has said he would help in anything that is out of my scope of expertise. 

.- I was scared to drop out of law school In 2021 and go all in on REI, I’m super happy with my decision.Now, whenever I’m scared/nervous, I take that as a sign that I should probably do it, and that it’s room for growth.Yes, sometimes it will be a mistake, but that’s how you learn.4) Value Relationships over everythingGood relationships will bring you more joy and take you farther than being selfish and/or greedy.What principles do you live by?

Well anyone can write anything into a contract, but whether it is legal and enforceable is for the courts to decide...It is State law here that a contractor must call 811 or they are liable for the costs.