And I'd acknowledge they're riding the line of what is and what is not acting as a real estate without a license (and doing net sales which are illegal for agents).I think the argument doesn't work because even if you banned wholesaling, people could still do simultaneously closings, which are just about the same, just a little more expensive. 

I'd be looking at multiple structures. we try to build below the average new build cost in our market in Columbus Ohio which is 515,000 last year and we target land 40-50k and urban core adjacent where we get higher price per square foot. we build for clients with margin around $190 a sq ft depending on multi or single. we can get that down in our triplex it's a little higher on our single family homes because of garages and limited economies of scale. hope that helps. idk Philly but if you show me the area and styles of homes I can give you some more insights. 

Every little thing in the project should be in writing, even down to the door stops :-) See my tile spec sheet below ...Two problems with your post though - 1) In my experience, most problems come from the customer changing their minds constantly.

I personally would stay away from condo-tels as they will be even worse and you'll have less opportunity to cash flow. 

I suspect even the banks who are aggressively expanding are doing so merely to sure up their geographical presence  to in order to expand their customer base but will then pull back on their branch numbers.Unless there is significant term remaining on the lease, there are other retail concepts that would be deemed more marketable.

Capital gains are calculated as:Sale Price - (Original Purchase Price + Capital Improvements + Selling Costs) - depreciation (if applicable) = Capital GainYour mortgage or HELOC balance does not affect this calculation—it only determines how much cash you take home after the sale.In Massachusetts, if the home was your primary residence for at least 2 out of the last 5 years, you may qualify for the Section 121 Exclusion, allowing you to exclude up to $250,000 (single) or $500,000 (married filing jointly) of the gain from federal capital gains tax.

I have three single family rentals for three years and I now have my first horror story.

Even if it was sold via a quitclaim deed statute of limitations may have run out.

I threw it into the cash flow calculator and it said it would either even out or it willl have a monthly cash flow of around 300$.

@John Lasher If you are still looking to spend $20k-$30K for a coach, I would be happy to take you up on that offer :) For full disclosure,  I will share with you precisely what you can learn online/ perhaps even entirely through these BiggerPockets Forums but that doesn't address the reason why most are still unable to purchase larger assets: creditworthiness and capital relationships.