There are valid reasons for both sides of the argument, however in the end, the decision remains by you and only you.

Pay Off Lender: $49KPay Off Investor: $16K ($2K profit)Remaining $1K goes to an emergency fund for the property.

. - thank you for your service, and thank you for your reply regarding the specialized training for your service dog.A follow up question: Would your well-trained service dog just leave your side because some sort of "distraction" appeared, or would it remain in place with you despite that distraction?

If we had canceled during the feasibility period, the seller would have received $1000 of that and the remaining $4000 would have been returned to my buyer.Again, it's all very negotiable with the seller.

I hope you are shocked.Now, calmly, on the other hand, if you are just speculating, that is, you are just happy with the general rise in the market, as long as all the old owners remain optimistic enough to keep on sitting tight so that there are few sellers, as long as enough high-tech jobs continue to pour into Portland (doesn't have to be many), as long as there is money in China looking for a way to not just disappear into thin air as in China it might (because at least here in Seattle that source seems responsible for most of the price-raising buying activity), then sure, maybe you are happy to pay 5.5% for the privilege of gaining that speculative increase in equity. 

I'm making the downstairs into an apartment for myself and then renting out the remaining 3 bed 1.5 bath  upstairs. 

The trouble is, by the time you actually get to the date of the sale maybe only one or two of the initial ten remain on the schedule -- and everyone else is bidding on them too.  

I definitely think the land is a massive part of the value - as this is one of the remaining relatively large plots of land in the town - most other plots now have horses or have been subdivided, plus this backs up to a beautiful reserve.

So a lot of the uncertainty was removed and the main variable that remained was our construction cost.

If you or another sponsor is lacking in an area, bring in other guys that fill the remaining needs/ requirements for the lender.