I wish I were, but I’m just waiting for my employer to relocate me to a less expensive area than New Jersey so that I can finally owner-occupy a home instead of renting.

Finally, I have been talking to a few people regarding financing for the land and build costs but I have been having trouble finding terms at a reasonable rates.

I had three years interning in the field and I was getting BLOWN up by offers from various Mortgage companies, so I finally decided to cut my losses at $40k of debt, enter the work force and stop racking up debt that I'm really not deriving direct, tangible value from. 

Pre-forclosure is a Zillow term and only means that someone is falling behind on mortgage payments - it's a long way from there to actual forclosure, then sheriff sale and finally (a year later or so ....)

@Don Gouge - HOA was not listed on most portals but I finally found it. $213 a month.. bummer!

With a design business and a background in construction I feel it could be a great path.Can you share a little about your costs to build and final margins?

For 5% down check out further west in Logan Square (like by Central Park Ave.) it's still close enough to the action but a lot cheaper acquisition price. 

So, regardless of the purchase price, if you have $20K into a property between acquisition and any renovation costs, and your yearly cash flow for is $2K, then your CoC return is 10%. 

Commercial - I'm thinking retail, office, or larger multis- More risk since there is a higher cost of acquisition and dollar amount needed to get started.

When we advertise it, we always make notes about how it's still under construction, but include final beds/baths, etc, photos, and rent amount.