Study the market.

Being 1.5hrs of NYC gives you a lot of options, even Long Island (which typically has more options for public commute into NYC).Give me a shout if you'd like to chat more, I have a handful of case studies on my site as well from deals I've closed/brokered that match the househacking criteria you're aiming for. 

Along with connections to IELTS Testing firms in India we have began what we refer to as a "pipeline" for international students looking to come to rural parts of eastern Canada to study.

Have you had soil borings yet?

Would you be interested in connecting and working together on a case study from 0-D/C class property?

IIRC you do not need the cost seg study to be completed before the end of the year, although you do need to have your rental "in service" before the end of the year.

I'd certainly recommend doing some kind of environmental study given the chemicals and such that could have been used there but more-so I'd be curious if the city wouldn't have a testing requirement to redevelop. 

A Cost Segregation Study was performed on a 2-story, 5,237 square foot Office Building located in Louisville, KY that was built in 1946 and purchased by its new owners in 2021.

In FL we not have a milestone study requirement for all 30+ year old buildings. 

While slightly more “boring”, with the amount of money you have to work with you could probably finance 4-6 $200,000 rentals and generate monthly income that could go a long way towards replacing / supplementing  a descent portion of your W2 income.