I am so happy for you that you made it work and it sounds like you did a bunch of learning along the way too which you will benefit from greatly over the next years as well.

You'll want to talk to them, see their work, and get a gauge for how much they cost.

I've had success with 2 short-term rentals, and wanted one more in relative close range to work and life.

The shortcut would be if you have 25% down then you can buy investment without living there. 

I'm particularly passionate about house hacking.Outside of real estate, I enjoy doing carpentry work and hopefully could put that knowledge into real estate as well.Excited to learn and connect with you all! 

The idea is to build a buy/hold portfolio that we own 50/50 with me doing the work and him providing the up front money. 

Most new wholesalers sizzle out after a few months (or even less) because you don't realize the amount of up front work and capital that's needed for something like this. 

I would really drill down on how and why it got to be so expensive, why they didn’t let you know before doing the work, and let them know you would have gone with the $9k bid had they communicated properly, then see if they will negotiate with you.

My wife and I recently moved to Lynchburg, VA for work and will be living here for approximately a year and a half.

its a lot of work and cash and carry.. no harm feeling it out and seeing if it will work for you.I have been buying courthouse steps since the late 70s.. it goes in spurts for us.