Do you foresee the value increase on this property for five years?

1) talk to a tax pro but I THINK you inherited the value at the time of your husbands passing as your new cost basis.

I'm looking for reliable and fair valued architects, engineers, contractors, etc. that can do good job, and in a timely manner.3.

Your better move is to buy them from the current owner at a value that represents what they are worth today.  

In the nearly 20 years since I've learned the true value of a "home".

I'd look at average home value of each market.

Loan to value ratio: The higher the loan to value ratio (LTV) is, pricing takes a hit.

Real value for the buck there. 

I don't know any investors that would give you money to buy a property with an unknown sale timeline with no value add. 

The CoC is great and we don't have a mortgage on the condo, however the current market value of the condo is about ~200k, so very less appreciation in last 10 yrs.Should I sell the condo and invest ~200k (minus fees) to buy an investment property with 30-40% down in an area (Durham, Raleigh) where I could expect greater appreciation down the road.