I am about to pay the land cash 500K, then build 10 apartments for roughly 1.5M.

Hey @Chi Lo - I actually have a video on my YouTube page about this (lookup ClosedByMo on YouTube).Regarding walls being damp and waterproofed, it means there needs to be waterproofing on the basement retainer walls (this is something you can do post-construction and the contractors would need to dig around the house exposing the basement/foundation to apply the waterproofing). 

Starting sooner rather than later allows you to benefit from long-term appreciation, build equity, and gain hands-on experience, even with a smaller property.

Other risks, the contractor walking off the job, a storm hitting and delaying the project for weeks, someone breaking into the home and stealing stuff (which happened just the other day to a client of mine), a squatter, or drunk driver driving into the house (happened a lot at my old job as a firefighter lol).

Determine the cost of construction (hiring a contractor in the GNO area is going to start around $165-175/sqft to build) and be sure to include all holding costs, as well as interest in the loan.

In the multi unit buildings I put on lease "Each tenant shares responsibility for removing snow and salting on both walkways and sidewalk infront of property" and I have them initial before we execute lease.

Once that’s confirmed, they’ll help you submit the required permits to the Department of Buildings (DOB) and get approval from the Department of Transportation (DOT), since it affects the sidewalk and street.After permits are approved, you’ll need a licensed contractor to do the construction.

Banks need for them to build recognized credit before doing an FHA type loan.

My Insurance Agent has strongly recommended that I put a Construction Agreement in place with my Contractor to shield me from liability, etc. 

However, the road block I face is getting to a point where I think it’s an “ok” deal (meaning it’s not fulfilling the 1% rule, but more like 0.75% and little to no immediate renovation cost/typically a new build townhome) and then I start to question whether I could find a BETTER deal if I just keep looking.