He's in the process of fixing it up so it's not livable and still needs probably $10k-$15k worth of work.The numbers simply don't work for flip, rental, or wholesale. 

That's $100 a month saved away for a future car that you can pay off with cash - no financing.I can tell you what I would do, though:Sell truck after home refi (lowest I'd take is 21k) - have 4k cash at my disposal after loan is completely paid off.

Earlier this year I used Oliver from People's Electric (http://www.peopleselectrical.com/) for a complete rewire of a duplex during a full gut rehab.

I would just be completely straight up and honest.

We paid him about 80% of his fee, he hadn't completed the project and it turns out all the work he DID do wasn't done correctly.If there is anyone that can provide some advice on how to deal with a situation like this, it would be greatly appreciated.We feel like we really got "screwed" on this one especially because we tried to follow all the correct steps in hiring a GC.

The triplex is completely occupied; how would I be able to utilize FHA financing with this scenario?

You could also complete a full 1031 exchange and then refi to take cash out (You would not want to refi the existing property if you anticipate selling it and doing a 1031 in the next few months).  

I have recently completed all of my course work and am now ready to take the California State Exam.

The result, he got after completing the work was really appreciable.

I am a complete novice when it comes to real estate investing other than being familiar with general investment principles and real estate investment terminology.