Questions from a first-time flipper

[Jason Unrath]

I found a local house I'd like to flip for my first investment, but have a few questions before I do:

1) I've never worked with a hard money lender before.  It's looking like I may need to in order to afford the property and rehab.  Should I find a lender who will pre-approve me for a loan (as of today, I can only estimate rehab costs based on online listing photos)?  Or wait until I have walked through the property to get a better sense of the rehab needed?

2) Can I legally (I'm in PA) schedule an appointment for a general contractor to walk through the house with me to generate an SOW before I even own the property?  I probably can't, but doing so would give me great information to bring to a lender.

Any other tips anyone can offer a first-time flipper would be appreciated as well.

Thanks.