I have precisely ZERO comparative advantage against those guys, so I figure it's probably best to do what I can to stay out of their end of the pool until I get my sea legs.Jeez, I dunno what it is about this forum, but I start out intending to write something quick and it ends up being a novel. 

@John Casmon Thanks for putting it in relative terms, that was precisely what I was looking for.  

A lot of you terminology is not clear or precise. 

That's precisely it Chris.

Then you want to take 25% of the remaining equity, and I'm left w/ barely over 2/3 of my investment (67.5%, to be precise) left working for me before you've created any significant value.    

I feel like I have a good idea of what to do to start my buy and hold strategy, now I just need to execute with precision.

 That is precisely my question as well. 

I've done some outside projects before but I'm looking to tackle bigger projects and need more precision.  

Speaking from experience, it is precisely as John says, making the work far more manageable for the contractor if a particular phase can be focused on, and with the ongoing cashflow by way of draws it helps to eliminate any potential issues with the guy "running out of money". 

Okay, that is precisely what I am asking.