However, there's no guarantee how long that would be (or at least, I don't have enough knowledge to know--if you know, say, with good evidence, that 2 years from now the prices will drop significantly then waiting is prudent).If there is no real evidence of large, detrimental economic factors going on (war, people moving out of the Bay in masses, an unusual amount of new construction making the supply on houses extraordinarily large for a prolonged amount of time), then there is no reason to assume that the seller's market will swing back to a buyer's market any time soon.The fact remains that the population in the Bay is growing year after year, tech companies are still expanding (to such a point where they are closing down Gold's Gyms, grrr, but that's another story), and this is still a highly desirable place to live.  

I am a husband to an awesome wife, and a father to two lovely daughters.My experience in real estate consists of countless hours of moonlight research and reading books, listening to a lot of BP podcasts, and lending a helping hand with construction and grunt work to friends who own rental properties to learn what I can from them.My goals in real estate are to invest in buy-and-hold single & multi-family properties, building a portfolio that will allow my wife and I the financial freedom and time to dedicate more of our efforts to helping and blessing othersThanks to BP for this invaluable resource to financial freedom and to all the members who contribute their knowledge so that others can learn and grow!

i want to control the whole structure (unless it is truly a steal) the area you are looking at is pretty good overall just be aware of construction issues in that part of town-sewer mains are a bit problem around there-old electrical panels-also the issue with number of owner occupied units can bite you and most likely has him when trying to sell them on the mls etc as fha financing would be out the window.  

It doesn't sound like he has any plans for it and I bet he would like to stop paying the taxes on a vacant property.

I am working on my third construction loan with the same bank, and they are getting to know me.  

(c) The licensing requirements of this Article do not apply to: (1) any person who is employed as a code enforcement official by the State of Illinois or any unit of local government, while acting within the scope of that government employment; (2) any person licensed by the State of Illinois while acting within the scope of his or her license; or (3) any person engaged by the owner or lessor of residential real property for the purpose of preparing a bid or estimate as to the work necessary or the costs associated with performing home construction, home remodeling, or home repair work on the residential real property, provided such person does not hold himself or herself out, or advertise himself or herself, as being engaged in business as a home inspector.

Regardless of that degree I got into construction because I felt more comfortable in construction.  

It will be difficult to find private money based on your income so your best bet might be to take on a partner in order to do this deal.  

With higher end properties in say a mid west market were Curt is remember you can buy BRAND new construction for 140 to 160k a door this is what buyers will compare to your 20 YO house thats been a rental.. to get retail value you would need a major renovation.I have been doing some renovation deals in the mid west last 3 years and you have to totally dial them in to get anywhere close to an appraised ARV or what you think is retail.. and I mean totally ... buyers in these markets have an over abundance of choices.. you may find that TINY pocket that is hot but other than that I think my statement is pretty accurate based on my personal experience in the mid west marekt place since 2002.

If you can self-fund the tentative map process, I would *imagine* (I don't know for sure) that you could find a bank-like financier for all the construction work in order to get the final.Unless you're quite experienced or have significant assets to pledge as collateral, I haven't heard of someone doing debt-only financing for a project like this.