It will familiarize you with the basic terminology and benefits.

We are at the thinking HARD phase and trying to see if we are wayyy tooo off of in asking price, are we unreasonable, is the PM not being diligent, everything above?

Your mentor has needs; try to meet them and develop a mutually beneficial relationship.A mentor can benefit your growth, but it's not as simple as one post on a forum full of strangers.

Rarely are there benefits to the seller to structure a transaction in the various ways you propose. 

You can also write it off as a business expense and there could be additional tax benefits for energy efficient home improvements.  

I have not consolidated them under one LLC as of yet—my attorney advised me to beware of franchise taxes in my state that may cancel out the benefits of consolidation.  

What are some best practices when working through due diligence at the phase of projecting cost?  

My interest-only monthly payment, including taxes and insurance, is $2,298.Phase 1 of the project was a gut-renovation of the existing home, which we converted to a three-bedroom, two-bath home.

I just started my due diligence phase, but the first thing I need to do is better understand the financial feasibility for the project, and how the return might compare to other investments we have undertaken in the past, which have been mostly acquiring existing buildings and renovating, not new construction.

Ensure the appraiser accounted for things like the square footage, recent improvements, location benefits, or other factors that impact value.