Any advice that will steer me towards getting this damn deal done would be PROFOUNDLY appreciated!

and so a lot of people steer clear but in my mind that means less competition.

Not sure about other states.If you talk to the contractor first, he will likely steer you to an engineer who knows and believes in the solutions that particular contractor offers. 

Thats our current reasoning for steering away from condos, here in the short term, and focusing on SFH. 

Prices are too high and the market is too competitive.I don't buy multis in MA, just in NH, but there are plenty of Massachusetts investors here on BP who can steer you to the towns where you might better approach those numbers. 

Sounds like I should just steer clear probably.

I steer clear of Allentown myself, both owning and doing work.

I have debated about investing there for quite some time but your points above have always steered me off.  

I have an old truck without power steering and it turns a lot better when it's moving ....I think there is a lesson there :)

Right now, my head is steering me in the direction of buying 2-3 smaller single family homes, or possibly holding off for a du/tri/quad-plex and going the BRRR route.