But the city has risks too: historic tanneries, dry cleaners, gas stations, garages, workshops, any kind of industrial use - always be suspicious of what people did with chemicals back in the 50s and 60s when the general population had no awareness of the damage I just had to turn down a small development  10  house's or 20 detached as phase 2 found chemicals for the Filbert orchard ( Filberts are hazelnuts ) that was planted 30 years ago.the soil had to be dug down 1 to 2 feet analyzed and hauled to special dump at 3X normal dump fee's.. there is a reason why we do phase 1 and phase 2 and just dont buy this dirt and take on those liabilities.. now to be fair this is for lending purposes is someone want to buy it the county / city would not require the phase 1 or 2 but you take on going risk of someone suing the pants off of you in the future.

To thrive in real estate investing, you must maintain a firm grip on your finances.

If so, what was your experience with Prosper Firm? 

So we had to be firm.

Unrelated to HOA but if homes won't pass the safety engineered designation, who demo's house and haul off and when does HOA or city make owner to remove?

Here is an excellent article on housing market expectations on appreciation from one of the world's top investment banking firms Goldman Sachs: What are some of the big differences you’re seeing among US regions?"

If you want to start big, you can reach out to local real estate groups or firms.

Moving forward, setting firm boundaries in negotiations is essential.

Another vote for all the same firm - I have never actually seen a client divide up work based on CPAs in different states for different projects. 

The stamping architect is taking legal responsibility for the work (just like a local partner for an "out-of-state" design firm), and most architects charge handsomely to review and stamp plans.