Which may come in to play if your finally 1031 rental property turns out not to make a good rental but an ideal retirement home for yourself, eventually.

You can be sued if it traces back to you, and the FTC will not play around with this.This is why every legitimate company DOESN'T do it.As much as I want to help, it's unethical, and I hope you understand.

That's after 3 years of intense looking and two offers in 2019 that I got cold feet on because it would have been the first investment property that I have owned. 

It might be easier to look for a partner to put up the capital if you find the deal manage the renovation and other time intensive activities.

Climate plays no role in my investing.

NYC is not a great market to start in since all the deals there will be appreciation plays.

I’ve played this game before.

You said you live in the house, so if it is for personal use only, that might play into the decision, and/or if you have a lot of room in the deal financially and have enough to pay for the higher priced, possibly better GC, that might be part of the decision also.In my experience, higher price doesn't always mean "better," but may mean more attentive and experienced and more and/or better resources (like better sub's, etc). 

In my market $10.50 is BELOW the average for an entry level labor intensive job requiring no education.

It has proven a winner for us.. because our competition wont allow contingent sales so we snag some of those playing the odds..