The 3rd was with a different bank (Grand Bank/ICON) and the fee's were higher and appraisal was required but it too was fairly smooth.

There are many hard money lenders on this site who have spent years participating, communicating, answering questions, etc, with members.

I have never heard of that but if it is fairly common in your neck of the woods Im sure that definitely made you more comfortable.My concern would be that something could possibly happen to the home during renovation (fire, tornado, etc.) that would destroy the property and you would not be the named insured on the policy.

My understanding is basis is supposed to be the LESSER of one of the below items, minus value of land:* actual costs* fair market valueOr am I wrong on this?

Two came in fairly high and one came in way low.

When the place goes vacant for a few months, you need a new roof (usually right away and at the worse time) or if a tenant stops paying rent and you need to evict them, you're looking at a fair amount of money out of pocket.

Even better, is to do this now (while the expansion is fairly healthy) and also reducing exposure over the next year or two. 

I must admit that I fairly regularly check the activity on the forums, but I'm less diligent on checking the blog.

You are however getting 8-12% on your money fairly safely though - really depends how much value you put on that.Also - whether you agree with my strategy or not, the MOST important thing is find metrics that suit your style, and do NOT deviate no matter how good the deal seems.

That's why you need to communicate with the lender before the note matures.