If you rent it out, you will be playing the appreciation game, like most SFR owners.

I get people coming to do seasonal contract work at a Nuc Power plant and they seem to find me via CL. 

My day job is pretty much a professional negotiator so I'll be ready to play ball or walk away. 

Here in NJ property taxes play a huge roll too.

my cousin said that before my aunt died she made her power of attorney and something else giving her authorization to sign on her behalf.

I've done the math in the past, and generally it plays out such that going FHA is mathematically identical to having a normal 30YF at 80% LTV, and a hard money 2nd position loan at an interest rate north of 10% for 16.5% LTV (CLTV 96.5%, which most FHA loans are).

Much of it is an appreciation play and not so much cash-flow in my opinion, but still worth paying attention to.

Does the 1% or 2% Rule come into play before subtracting operating expenses from monthly income or after?

I don’t know about Providence or whoever your governing power to be is but here in Florida, what makes it “buildable” is what the requirements were when the lots were originally platted.

There are far better cash flow plays in the US..