Our locals will negotiate on sight distance but there has to be a reason.  

You can always try check with the city's planning or building & safety departments to see if they have any type of file related to the parcel, and if they do, if there is any due diligence in the file, i.e. soils, etc. 

We have a local manager that can check ID's upon arrival. 

@Jake Handler is a local agent who could assist you and point you in the right direction.

So sometimes if I have to spend a few hundred bucks to have the architect draw out the details to help the tradesman later down the road, I will. 2.) local municipalities fees.

I am sure GC has great returns, but sometimes dealing with local RE Investors, you could get higher ROI because we want our private lenders to come back and refer us to their friends.

It's not literally scanning your OTAs for openings, but if you knew you had one upcoming, you could set this up in a travel group about that local area and shoot promos out to its members. 

This involves thorough research on local trends, networking with other investors and property managers, and finding reliable contractors who deliver quality work on budget.

I've started working with a builder locally on our first Development/Build Project.

Or wait until we have 2 incomes to build more of a solid financial safety net.