So while the SF, age, and location of property were very good, the pictures available on the MLS didn't truly reflect the renovation scope needed at the property, so the price it sold for was not indicative of the value of my fully renovated house.

I'd encourage you to spend some time reflecting on you and your goals.

It is much more rural and the prices reflect that.

Hi Shaun, Once you confirm that the site can be rezoned to meet your intended uses(s), you need to run a pro forma that reflects the market conditions and realities for the product you plan to create.There is (or should be) great upside potential in each phase of the trip.

Brandon's recommendation is old and out dated like many things written in any RE  book he has not had time I suspect to update that aspect to reflect the new laws.. 

Do keep in mind that property tax increases are reflective of increased value of properties.

I reflected on my own life and I became more aware of certain things:1.

Had we used a licensed expert, we could have saved ourselves a lot of headache and money in renovations, that otherwise, could haver been negotiated to reflect more favorable terms for us.

I've been in that situation before and it sucks.Now, you might feel that your only choices are to either get mistreated while being $3000 lighter, or to take the money and potentially let other people get screwed because you didn't warn them.But there might be a third option if you can convince the business owner that negative reviews can be turned into positive results.Point out that all businesses, even the best ones, make mistakes and receive bad reviews.But the best businesses work with their customers to fix the problem and have the review edited to reflect that.

The area I live is nice enough, but there NOTHING here and the market reflects that.