In order to get our vote, the developer will be doing lots of work  on our complex for free and assure that our fees stay flat for many years.

If you had a million dollars sitting in a money market account collecting less than 1% per year what would or could you do to leverage that capital without incurring excessive risk?

I'd rather own a property in a market with high values than in a market with flat, stagnant or no appreciation.

Preapproval on a residential property;  home or four flat 

For example, if you do not need the excess cash today you can plow it back into other properties.  

We wanted to purchase a 3 flat, but the numbers for cash flow were just not working out in the areas we were considering.  

The operating partner typically invests a smaller percentage of capital and collects a fee and a carry, or in other words, charges a regular ongoing fee to the project for active management and takes a disproportionate share of the profits for returns achieved in excess of an agreed-upon structure of investment rate hurdles (known as a waterfall).

Yes you will need permits for that and that will involve licensed contractors.Now I also see the number you have in for Insurance ( $1819) for a 100 yr old 3 flat in Lincoln Park.

Is the lot flat and ready to build or sloped in need of extensive excavation?

Looks like the "right" way is to tear everything out and start over but I'm thinking about taking the easy way out, clean it up and coat it with a product I found at the local lumber yard.Went to Lowes first and the guy I spoke with said he had the same problem of pitched roof tied in to flat roof and it was always leaking.