Do you feel like you are stepping up and doing what you need to do to obtain the life and results you desire? 

@Nadeem Alamgir Thanks for the step by step detailed suggestions!

Pretty,  as others have stated here, the permitting process through the City of Cape Coral has been hindered by their ability to scale up their staff to handle the massive demands for all permitting including new construction but also anything else that requires a permit, home improvements, sea walls, alternative sea walls, pools and more.From your post, I can see that you are frustrated, and I believe some of that is due to not understanding the steps and processes of new construction, including what must be done prior to submitting permits.

What would be the very first steps to get started? 

Ask questions to find out about their reasons for selling, desired next steps (i.e. relocation, 1031 exchange, etc.), and anything else that is important to them.Ask follow-up questions to dig deeper and learn more (without being too intrusive) then jot down any relevant notes so that you can reference them down the line during your follow-up calls.

That would be my recommendation for next steps. 

It's just a few time steps behind. 

Admitting to myself and to others that real estate investing is something that I want to pursue with everything I have is a big first step for me.

Expanding to a 2nd or 3rd property is a big step.

They will want to pass on the stepped up basis to their descendants and you want them not to.