The company stated, "The closings were brought about by the rising cost of doing business in California."

Yearly net cashflow after absolutely all costs and a margin of safety should be between $15,000 - $20,000.Lessons learned?

Is there a way to accurately evaluate the repair cost of this kind of issue? 

Credit karma gave me a score of 711, I know it is an estimate but I found it weird one had a score yet the lender got none.

We need additional 50k to Finnish house and estimate conservatively it will be worth 350k, I think it will be closer to 420k.

You need to find a deal that works under beginner terms.Hard Money/Private Money works when the deal is good and when margins are thin it can be costly that's why sticking to max project cost being less than 72.5% ARV is key.  

Partner Driven financed the Faith Home Rd deal using its own capital, covering the $22,000 purchase price and $30,000 in renovation costs.

A PM can cost you 10-15% per year but they can also keep you at market rate and protect you from losses.

With my down payment, closing costs, and renovations, I will have put down around 70k (down payment and renovations).

Off market is often a myth unless you are the one perhaps generating the leads, but then again that cost money and time and effort.