If you are looking to stay in the real estate game, leverage your equity and buy more real estate.

We actually sold one of the 5 acres however it had a 20 thousand sq ft Butler metal building and we sold that to someone in the Wine business actually for Champagne Ridling machines he had invented.

I would turn this little room into an amenity space, game room, spa, gym, etc.

Why would a guest ever shut off water to a washing machine?

Cash flow is the name of the game when it comes to controlling the asset so you are right it really doesn't matter whether the value goes up or down as long as you can carry it. 

I've dabbled in the new construction space here in Chicago and there is A LOT that goes into it...I'd highly suggest spending some 1:1 time networking with some other investors like @Jennie Berger or @Prashanth Mahakali who are both Chicago developersYou make your money with the land purchase and then systems/processes/volume over time in the development game, but it's not easy and competition is high!

Conversely, if the federal 8582 shows zero unallowed losses, is the game over for offsetting gains at the state level even when the prior losses were not used to offset the gains at the state level?

Last fall our girls soccer team had a game canceled because one of her friends found a dead body just off the pitch near the parkway.  

You're playing the game the right way.What's your lead source for finding the properties? 

On the surface, I would consider house hacking here and play the appreciation game.