Almost done

So this semester of school is finally drawing to a close. I have had a couple of interesting classes this semester, my entrepreneurship class has really made me feel like I have found my calling in life. My accounting and financial statement analysis class has also contributed to helping me find what isn't my calling in life. I don't really mind accounting, it makes sense, and it's not too difficult but it just isn't what I want to do.
I recently did a presentation on starting a Volvo Equipment rental franchise, I think it's a market that could prove to be very profitable in a down economy since the companies that are still around are going to have a hard time getting credit they can use rental equipment as a way to maintain their workload while freeing up their assets. If only I had $750,000 in liquid assets, oh well.
My biggest question for my teacher was how do I go about getting the funding for my projects, I have several that I have put together decent financial data for that I think could be beneficial for both myself and the investor, but I haven't figured out how to get that money flowing. My teacher said that if I found an opportunity that I was passionate about and had substantial research, then he could get me the investors.
So I have been working on a couple of ventures, one's a tech company that I have been working with some classmates to develop, the other is a green construction company that is really where my passion lies. I think now is a good time for start ups particularly in real estate. I expect prices will continue to drop for a bit longer but by the end of next year or shortly thereafter real estate values should, and likely will, pick up again. So that provides a good opportunity for a company to pick up parcels on discount, make improvements and resale at an increased margin.
One item I am conflicted on is the idea of HOAs. I really like the idea of having an entity to maintain common space (clear snow, rake leaves, cut grass, etc.). I also think that some amenities are not practical on an individual basis (wind power, swimming pools, tennis/basketball courts, skate parks, etc.). So far the best solution to these kinds of needs is through an HOA. Now the downside to an HOA is that the community has to come to some sort of agreement, and even if they don't agree they still have to pay for it. The other consideration is that all the amenities could be broken off and paid for on a "use" basis but often the "use" is not enough to justify each amenity individually but collectively it works. Like a gym membership, while you pay for the use of the whole club you often use only a couple of peices of equipment, if you broke out the price of just those peices and paid for only them, the gym wouldn't be able to function, but collectively, since you pay for stuff you don't necessarily use it works. The problem with an HOA in this same respect is that the residents don't really have the choice of which gym they are going to join, except by purchasing the home. My question is are HOA's worth it? What would make them worth it? What could make them better?