CA and AZ Area Investors to Network and Learn With

[Amable John Aguiluz XIII]

Hi All,

I've been signed up with BiggerPockets since last year, but I have finally gotten myself into being active on this forum.  I have 5 properties (3 in CA and 2 in AZ).  I feel like I'm moving too slow and that I'm not scaling up as quickly as I want.  I've passed on so many potential deals because I didn't have the know-how to be more creative in acquiring such projects.  

Wife and I started out with a duplex at 21 and scaled up to the next two properties in CA as owner occupied.  The AZ ones were pocket listings that I picked up from my cousin's clients which was fair for everyone involved.  We live in one and the other 4 are cash flowing. 

The 1st property we bought was an owner occupied HUD property; the next one was an FHA purchase also owner occupied. The third in CA was conventional 20% down owner occ, but I rotated the money around through manufactured spending and floated for the down payment. Those of you in the Travel Hacking world know what I'm talking about. The last two properties were purchased with tenants in place: one as non owner occ and the other as a second home; 25% and 20% down conventional respectively.

I'd like to get into more multi-family acquisitions, but any deal is a deal.  I would love to connect with people, and not just in CA or AZ.  Primarily, I'd like to know more about creative financing plays.  Are there any local groups that I could join or any more experienced investors who would give me the time of day to mentor me?  

To note, I am also a travel and credit card hacker.  haha Maybe we could exchange some knowledge or even come up with something outside of the box with what we know.  I'm up for anything.  Thanks for the support!