I am in the restoration and roofing business.

He could have afforded it, he was working for a big mold restoration company making 5k a month, rent is only $900.

I own a restoration company and we have resorted to a third-party to handle these exact situations.

Home and car restorations, mountain biking, traveling... everything fun is if it's limited. 

I don't know that he would do the building part again, but he is an incredible reference if you're interested in working on / restoring older properties.

You probably also have a water leak from the meter, so to prevent any further damage you should probably cap off the water supply until it can be restored properly.

Another nice bit of economic news about New Bedford and Fall River are the plans to restore rail lines to Boston.

Thanks to all that read my post and any advice or recommendations is very much appreciated.PS For whatever it is worth, I have been successfully self-employed for 25 years as a piano tuner, technician and restoration specialist. 

-Our last project was a BRRRR, where my brother and I did a substantial amount of the labor on a very intensive rehab/restoration.

This may not put the debate to rest or provide any meaningful insight, but I thought it was an interesting anecdote to share.