To Find a house on the beach you will be looking at paying over a million. 

Once that is done and the dust has settled, you can go after the contractor (if you can find him) in small claims court. 

On the positive side, a new build truly should have minimal cap ex for the first 5 to 10 years (depending on which builder you are using of course...)Best of luck in your decision - I would be curious to see if you can find any local investors who are actively buying new builds in Hazel Green right now. 

Research emerging neighborhoods, find properties using MLS, Zillow, and Redfin, explore financing options, form partnerships, analyze deals using BRRRR calculators, and manage the rehab process.

If I’m not out scouting properties, you can often find me on a nearby golf course.Excited to learn and connect with you all!

Yes, this is pretty normal - generally conventional loans like this are super competitive (since everyones essentially offering the same product) so shopping and finding some deals especially with smaller banks and brokers can yield good rates well under the "prevailing headline market rates"

The short term rental is more aligned with my long term goals, but it is just skipping ahead by a few years and skipping over the 3 long term rentals I had Initially planned for my portfolio.Do I keep the property and maybe drop the rent under market value, while also coming about of pocket until we find new tenants, or sell and use the equity towards short term? 

They might also drop and then everyone comes rushing back in and making it harder to find a good deal. 

We wanted to find our path to replacing that income and not sitting in a corporate cube 8-10 hours a day.  

For accurate tax treatment and to maximize deductions, this is the best place to find answers and professional support.