So I almost “broken even” with the cost of construction vs. valuation aspect.

You are not paying for their services and won't cost you anything extra anyways. 

I see hard money lending as just part of the cost when doing these kinds of deals.

Sewer line backup, ordinance & law, and replacement cost coverage are coverages I include. 

Insurance cost for weather-related disasters is growing to a major concern in many of the southern markets.

If you are in a state where eviction cost is high and it is tenant friendly you may need a higher credit score to offset default risk and eviction cost.If you are in a landlord friendly state where it is easier to get non paying tenants out you may be able to handle more none payment risk.  

But again, your profit after selling costs (and any capex improvements) would have to be in excess of $60ok to really make sense.

We were shocked at the cost of goods, lumber, cabinets, paint, plumbing.

After the meeting there was no action plan other than doing a cost segregation study on the properties we had.

I use American Tenant Screening and will call them tomorrow.