Your focus on building equity and achieving independence aligns well with your chosen strategies. 

I'm 42 with a family, financially independent, and doing it right now. 4 of us are sharing 1 bathroom while we slowly fix up this house.

In my experience, you are thinking through this correctly.I've heard lawyers say, if the loan is in your name (which it has to be for conventional) and the deed is in the LLC, you aren't treating the business as an independent entity and in a severe lawsuit, the corporate veil is pierced and the LLC can be thrown out.I agree that one of the best defenses is to run your properties well. 

I have a son 2 years younger than your son… How did you go about moving your son along towards financial independence?  

I will also add that many independent travelers that do room rentals enjoy having their own fridge.To keep things kosher in shared spaces, my friend who runs PadSplit says every room comes with one colors or plates cups etc to ensure that guests are accountable for their own dishes.

For seniors, living in an ADU on their children's property sure beats a $7K/mo assisted living center and still gives them independence.

It will be interesting to see how all this plays out during an investigation, but I sure hope that the money can be followed for the investors' sake that were damaged here.I've also been made aware that a company, Tardus Wealth Strategies, who "coaches investors on financial independence in 10 years or less" was heavily promoting the Norada fund to unaccredited investors and was also heavily promoting Ron Fossum. 

@Thomas Youngman - That sucks to hear about the valuation - What about getting an independent valuation from someone that's not attached to a bank?

Strengthen due diligence with thorough tenant screening and independent verification.

Each of these could cause the borrower to need more capital during the construction process independent of the cash necessary to close.