Getting multiple contractors involved will be your best bet to get a reliable estimate, though you need to come up with a scope of work.

I also read in real estate by the numbers that it's risky to bet on market appreciation.

So your odds of reaching that 8-10% CoC potential is possible, but tougher.

We’re not mass-producing automobiles here, so that’s an odd analogy.

So if your big into water sports, living in the desert could have all the profit in the world but it's going to be miserable hell and odd's are after some months the profits wont matter.

My son just joined the Navy and now that I’m an empty nester I want to make a shift and bet on myself!

Separate checking accounts not required, but you need to maintain separate books and records.The TREC requirement is correct, but odds of enforcement seem low.

If not, buying a turnkey, rent-ready property could be a better first bet.

Yes, actively asking for investments on July 18th and revealing suspension of payments on July 20 seems a bit odd and poorly done. 

Profile here for reference: https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/amyb289It stood out as oddly out of place to me to the point where I recalled it and was able to dig it up tonight.Anyway, again...