Also, ive been looking online but dont see any kind of builder  scorecard.

I’m not sure how foreclosures are handled in Florida, but, if a legal notice has to be filed prior to the foreclosure  sale date, that is your lead source.

I will not be able to attend that meetup in Sherman Oaks, as there is another one on the same date/time in Long Beach that I've already committed to.

I have not read the book but there are two areas of conern for me: The 10 year maturity date and the adjustable rate.

Often, you can get a rough idea of the land height (topography) from an online GIS map of the area, or from another source for topographic information. 

If you proceed I would suggest putting everything down in writing (loan amount, interest rate, pay back date, what happens if payback date it missed etc). 

"this was a foreclosure so there is a slim chance that the foreclosed upon individual will have the right to buy back the property from you for the amount you paid me, as long as he/she exercises their right before said date")?

I recently started using cozy.co to process online rent payments.

For example a dated kitchen with walls yellow from cigarette smoke and a 60 year old oven is fine, a kitchen that you can't cook food in is not fine -- even if it is otherwise modern, new, and clean. 

I use QB Desktop and I remembered seeing this function there but maybe not the same with Online QB.