1) Verify Experience / Check references of investor2) Verify Investor has substantial Skin in the Game3) Verify Deal is actually a deal (has enough meat on the bone / upside potential)4) Get 1st position (this specific deal 2nd position is best buyer can offer...bank will be in 1st position)5) Verify Scope of work makes sense and bids/costs are realistic 6) Check contractor(s) track record / references.7) Release cash in draw form upon completion of various rehab scope milestones.What am I missing (and what above is inaccurate)?

But in all you have to have skin in the game.

Similar type of property, a German old couple who I think were more savvy then they let on, the place on the surface had all this interesting wood work and history that they kept emphasizing, while trying to ignore and deflect all the problems underneath.

I'm on the road right now so will need to reread tonight to fully digest but overall it is nice to know what I already suspected that major banks are not a great option, and that there are other ways to skin a cat here.

Some things to consider otherwise:- Paint is likely to outperform stain (in large part due to the pigments) over the long haul- Be cautious when power washing... a lot of damage can be done to the surface very quickly and water can get into places it's not supposed to... consider hand washing with TSP - Be cautious if spraying outdoors... don't want to have the wind carry overspray onto the neighbor's houses, vehicles, or other property (it happens all the time - dryfall paint is one option).  

I have only scraped the surface, but I want to continue going deeper in Pueblo while starting a second market in the midwest... maybe Columbus or Cleveland.Are you two committed to attainable goals or audacious goals?

If the contribution loan is over $7 million, expect the possibility that you will have to come in with "skin in the game" cold hard cash.

You don't have any skin-in-the-game so you have nothing to lose.  

I don't see MKE as "cookie cutter" (usually=north side is simply a big cesspool of violence, drugs and despair, suburban counties are "picture perfect" on the surface but dig deeper and its just a modern day Klan clown rally, BOTH assumptions are trash) I see MKE as a very diverse area where, if you find the right people to do business with, background and ethnicity is not a factor here, simply whether people are decent people or not, you can succeed here.

I would have liked a better result - smooth surface, no streaks, high shine.