For the remodel I am thinking of extending the main home (which would make it "L" shaped") to incorporate the detached carport and detached bedroom/bathroom.  

What mechanism would be driving such "cycles"? 

You should be between $35-$45 per cut.

I'm curious, if you were to invest elsewhere, what areas would you consider and what factors would drive your decision?

Going rate around here in Seattle would be about 7k.  11k is too much, I suggest you get a bunch more quotes. 

I see how they would fund based on the numbers of a long term rental, short term rental, and midterm rental.

I would enjoy chatting with anyone that would be able to give me some advice as I am a recent college graduate and eager to get more involved in investing and overall in the real estate industry.

I would also consider buying a building and remodeling.Budget up to 3mGive me insight and would love to connect to developers or brokers who think they have deals that can fit

Rest assured; the process is designed to be straightforward. 

We would only plan to manage our own properties.Would there be any tax advantages, or any other benefits, to starting our own property management company?