If they move house will need probably $1,500 in general cleanup/rehab.Rent is currently undervalued, at $650.

Gibson - Hard money is generally the most expensive money you will get. 

I spent 21 years in, retired in 2008.In general, your personal residence is a terrible investment.

I know there is generally a better rate to be had when putting down 25% vs 20% but what is typical on higher down payments, say between 25% and 50%?

@Shaun MorganShaun,  Some generals numbers for you; 2% rule (search the millions of hits on any search engine), Return on Investment (ROI), Cash on Cash returnCome up with a standard for these any other other number you can calculate.  

How long should this generally take on buildings of this size?

we do a lot of infill building.. this only works in HIGHLY desirable areas @Wayne Brooks  as Wayne states not sure were your thinking the value play is here.now there are plenty of folks that buy cheapo lots in FLA like Lehigh acres then sell for a few grand more on contracts those are the land flipping guru's you see that's what they teach.. and there are millions upon millions of lots available for this type of activity generally in FLA  and West Texas  AZ CA and other areas that had massive land speculation booms in the turn of the century.. think Lancaster Palmdale in CA there are million plus platted lots there that get traded around at tax sales every year.to find land with value to builders you need infill in established areas.. close to down towns.. in areas that are regentrifying .. lots that have shadow plats beneath them. or you can split using a lot confirmation technique ( common in Portland)  you need to work areas of Scarcity .. 

Just closed on my first investment property in north Phoenix, AZ and I am looking for a GC familiar with investment properties. Must be lIcensed and bonded. Property is just under 1400sq ft, 3 bedroom 1.5 bathrooms.

...

I have read about the 2+1 law as a general law for California, meaning a 2 bedroom house could have 5 people, although this is just a general guideline.

Improvements generally refer to the stuff that was built on the land (i.e. the house, buildings, etc).