Seems like a lot of apartment investors have been repositioning their equity into less management intensive assets with predictable cash flows.I see this as an end-game or holding pattern. 

the few things you missed on are things that sound like you didnt have experience with - things an architect or contractor generally would know about, like you need insulation/underlayment for floors, maybe nails maybe glue all depending on which you use - you generally have to calculate a waste factor for most materials and it will be different say if you lay your tiles in a pattern or just straight rows, the size of the tiles will make a difference too - for sheetrock you have to know the costs of nails, plaster, green white or if maybe you really need cement board - so it looks like you need a prompting calculator or a rough estimate generator or a contractor or maybe just learn more and do it in excel yourself?

While your family's situation has similarities to the original post, the fact pattern is dramatically complicated by the need to address probate laws in your grandmother's state. 

As I form bonds with the right people, I develop my patterns.

Now we install flooring.In this video I go over:engineered wood vs. hardwoods (and why I choose engineered wood for most of my projects),how we install the flooringand how to save a little money on your stair installationstile installationprepping the wet areashow I easily communicate with my tile guys to ensure that the correct tile is installed in the correct area, the direction that I want, and the pattern that I want

I also ripped down the entire ceiling as it was a ugly swirl pattern that did not look very clean.  

You'll notice a couple patterns of the site layouts.

There have been some clever workarounds in the past, but once a pattern emerges that raises red flags, the banks legal department figures out a way to put and end to it or at least make it more difficult.

Its easy to place a trade less space for more freedom when the only person you're responsible for is yourself; as more millenials get married and start having kids I wonder if these patterns of consumption will begin to reflect their parents a bit more. 

WV has several areas that are promising for investment - but pay attention to demographics and population/migration patterns for an area.