The main reason: new builds tie his money up for too long.

Regulations such as these ONLY get stronger,never weaker.

I just thought it would make our case a lot stronger. 

Is the goal simply to tie up the property by finding something below market price and entering into an "option" to by with the seller, then finding a buyer as quick as possible?

Any of the developers compensation can be converted to equity tying their profits to the success of the project.

I have a somewhat similar situation as Bill's and I am tying to get some ideas on my basic bare bones frame work.

They had a shoe lace tied to the towel rack and to the mixer to stabilize it!!!

There might be opportunities to pick up a deal from them if they are tied up into a rehab project already. 

There is still significant demand in the Cincy area because their build up has been a bit slower so they have not reached the saturation point that we are starting to see in places like Columbus and Indy John, the population growth is much stronger in Columbus than Cincinnati.  

This could come from an investor that gets in a tight spot and needs the money (which is why you don't admit investors that can't afford to have the money tied up for the long haul) or it could come from a buyout strategy where you take control of the entire property.