Traditionally I have sold the builder land and loaned him the money to buy the land and build the house with us splitting up the profits when it sold. 

Yes, most large traditional lenders only focus on 1-4 units and other properties that fit into a box. 

I am at 4 now and hoping to average 2 more per year yet ready to quit my traditional job ASAP.  

We have an added layer of stress compared to something turnkey in the traditional sense. 

What’s your experience been like with traditional lenders vs. private options like ours?

That said, I completely understand your concern about deals looking "too good to be true" when you’re putting in 50% down.To avoid this, it’s best to analyze properties as if you were using more traditional financing (20-25% down).

I assume the sellers are offering seller financing since obtaining a traditional mortgage or refinancing to one after 7 years for this property is highly unlikely.

The problem we are having is much of our current deal flow is below traditional lending terms (<$75K).

It's not a traditional school building.

Obviously this is California spec building and not the traditional RE stuff I come to this website to read about :)I should not have said same as main house.