I am curious of where people find these low priced homes, if it is my location that is the problem, and if $30k-$40k homes are still possible to flip?

Thank you for taking the time to do a deep dive. 2% home appreciation was also a fairly low estimate, it looks like in that area it is actually around 5-6%.

The appraiser gave the house a low score so the bank said it is a risky investment for them and gave me a 70% loan.

Plus, house hacking with a VA loan’s benefits (no down payment, low interest) is a no-brainer.After a year, transitioning into BRRRR with single-family homes makes sense, especially since you’re working on your real estate license—it’ll sharpen your skills and help you spot opportunities.

Cost to build is $350K (I am managing it all myself and calling in favors around the city to get low rates on materials and labor).

If you want to work with multiple agents, those agents know there's a very low chance of ever earning a dime, so they won't waste their time.Agents do much more than find property.

Safe to say that many punters who invested in low cap rate syndication deals, especially during the peak of the hype, are getting schlonged right now. 

I will follow the advice here to keep high deductibles and low premium and save the premium for any contingencies later.

I would tell people today that if you buy a primary residence expect to stay in that home for atleast five years, especially with a FHA loan which has lower down payment as the current forecasts for home appreciation or very low which with closing costs on the buy and sell, it will take several years to have equity in the property and enough to be able to sell, so that is something also to consider.

If you have a low interest rate, consider a HELOC for value-add BRRRRs or flips.