New guy building a team/ referrals

[Edward Hernandez]

Hi all!  Glad to join BP. I listen to the podcast often and have studied up a bit.  Now I'm looking to build up a team and fine tune my knowledge so I can get in the game and start acquiring property and building a portfolio.

I'm in San Antonio, TX and looking for referrals for general contractors, investor friendly realtors, hard money lenders, and private investors.

Have no experience, but good cred.

My assumption is to start with a few house flips first to build capital and then get into buy and holds. 

Let me know if you have any local referrals and/or suggestions on my game plan. And timing in the market? (inflation, interest rates going up, inventory, etc...)

Thanks!

[Edward Hernandez]

@Julio Gonzalez, @Zack Busch, @Justin Windham, @Jim Kalish

Fellas, thank you all for the great advice and timely responses! Appreciate your time in providing some insight.

A few points you guys touched on:
-Flips: I do have a full time job currently, so not sure how this factors into the equation in regards to flips, as they can be time consuming and require constant attention. Also, my understanding is that hard money lenders only require bank statements and not W2's. Is it ambitious to try to have my cake and eat it too? Keep my job and flip homes? Not sure if FHA loans require W2's.

-In regards to investment properties: I really like the house hacking concept of buying a multi and then doing a refi to fund the next one. (I also had in mind to use an FHA loan for the acquisition since it will allow me a lower downpayment , as long as I live in it for a year or two.) However inventory is somewhat low in my current market for these (or at least at a reasonable price in a decent area) I own my current home so I could rent this out too.

-Another point I want to add, regardless of the path I choose, will be finding good contractors. Seems that's the elephant in the room. Finding reliable contractors seems like an oxymoron based on the stories and conversations I've heard and read. For someone who works full time, would it be enough to go to the job site once a week or on the weekend only? Where do I find reliable guys in my local area? Joining the local REIA will help with connections, but not sure if there are other methods or sources of finding labor (and retaining them).

I'll be curious to hear from anyone out there in BP land reading this thread, and what your thought or experiences are.

Thank you all again for the support and encouragement, and hope to keep the convo going!  - Cheers