I own a property free and clear but am having difficulties being approved for a construction loan.  

In most cases you'll find everything you need here on BP so don't spend any extra money elsewhere.

If you are in a tight margin market, then the thousands of dollars in extra closing costs and interest will eat your margins. 

My Dad was a fire fighter and then Captain with Clark County for 25+ years.With the amount of time firefighters have off Real Estate is a great way to make some extra $$$ in the off time.Let's connect.

Maybe it's different if the "extra" money is coming from an assistance agency like SAVE. 

Otherwise, I think it's worth doing a comparative analysis to see how well you would do with a new loan and investing that extra money in what you think you can get for a property.

Those contractors will usually charge a bit more (not tremendously more) to do the work, but they are well worth the extra cost. 

The other thing I didn't agree with is that if I'm forcing my potential buyer to produce a Cashier's check, I'm making them jump through an extra/unnecessary hoop.

In fact we are currently in escrow in Lincoln Heights, though I am expecting it to fall out of escrow as we are difficulty with the bank and the seller.  

I purchase the house directly from you so there are no real estate commissions or extra fees coming out of your pocket.