I'd recommend looking at costs. your build cost is going to be well over other homes because of the fixed costs like slab, Hvac, roof, etc. check the market drivers and weight the benefits of short term versus long term. long term is no furniture and help pays mortgage but at this size it doesn't really cover everything. we didn't find a lot of economies of scale in single family detached. can you build more than one unit?

As a rookie the fear is that I make a horrible purchase which ends up costing me my primary home.About me, I have been fixing aircraft for over 20 years and this is primary income.

We have converted oil boilers  to gas boilers to reduce costs. 

It sat for a bit and the price was lowered to 46k so I toured the house and made an offer of 36k after adding up renovation cost in my head.

if there is appreciation, but you wouldn’t sell your current home tax free and buy a neighboring home to rent out, (There by raising your cost basis for additional depreciation and lower capital gains tax.) then it probably doesn’t make a good rental property. . 

So about 8 houses per year will do ya....but don't forget your costs of doing business AKA overhead....Very good point!

The current property is propane-only, and while natural gas is available, the cost to bring the line is around $40K–$50K.

I usually only have about 2k for closing costs out of pocket.

He prioritizes deals with substantial margins, mitigating rate increases, and actively manages rehab costs to maximize profitability by being heavily involved in the process and GCing his own projects.

The total cost including construction and permits (but excluding the land) comes to about $2.14 million.