In short, I’m trying to figure out if it’s worth pursuing an off-market seller financing deal versus getting a traditional loan and competing for the property on the open market.

Depending on the condition you'll command a better price on the MLS vs. off market.

thanks for the guidance @Kaushik Sarkar Since it's development it will take longer to get to the exit. 3 years could be right depending on the market, if the project requires entitlements, how long it takes for permits, no major utility obstacles, etc.

I have tried both, I think it depends on the market you are targeting and the type of leads.

Finding great off-market deals can feel like a needle-in-a-haystack challenge.

UNTIL YOU SELL THE PROPERTY... then the cap goes away and you are taxed on the fair market value of the house which is usually the new sales price less maybe 15%.  

You'll likely want someone that can handle A to Z with marketing, pricing, cleaning, maintanence, decor, websites, reviews etc.

Even if you have a higher return in the stock market, you'd be doing it with a lower basis after tax and it will take a long while to recoup from that. 

You rarely will get both (at least not right now in this current market).If you want to explore different opportunities within various areas of the Valley, get a seasoned investor-friendly Realtor who is competent. 

If this is not something you're interested in delving into and learning to a high degree, then investing in publicly traded REITs would be another good option for you, which have historically returned about 13.5 per cent Per year over the past 50 years (1977-present), beating the US stock market by two per cent and even beating private real estate investing by 4 per cent (that's compared with the average real estate investor, not the experts here at Bigger Pockets).