I'm sure they would be very interested to know the involvement of Ron Fossum as well.

I am able to do majority of the work involved and have been in trades for over ten years.

Remember some organizations develop solar for their image and the feel good aspect, not the financial profit.This statement can be applied to any form of new energy development. 

That will involve settling on your plan for renovating.

This does not involve the utility company meaning that you will still have to go into the property, read the meters, then individually bill each tenant for their usage and understand the bill is still in your name.

It's just not a subclass I want to be involved in, but perhaps you can make it work for you! 

Applying that to RE investing, most would agree your first FHA loan should be a multi-unit house hack.

Budget Wisely:Make sure your budget accounts for the purchase price, the cost of the renovations, and any additional charges involved in flipping a house.

And I have had two potential opportunities "fall into my lap" that involve inherited properties that need major remodels to be able to compete in the MTR market. 

Nothing illegal about doing that, but if caught, the lender may call the loan due and if you don't correct the situation or pay the loan off, they willstart mortgage foreclosure.3) You could also go the HELOC route to tap the equity in the home, but the 12-month owner-occupancy will also apply AND the interest rate on the HELOC will fluctuate with the Fed Fund Rate.4) You could do a cashout refi as an investment property, but that will be at an interest rate 0.5-1% higher than owner-occupied rate.Suggest you meet with 2-3 lenders to explore your options about the above.Once you have access to funds, recommend you buy a 2-4 unit with 20-25% down. - You can buy owner-occupied, live in one unit, and fix up and rent the other unit(s).- If you're handy, recommend buying a property in the worst condition you can tolerate.