100% Agree with @Mike Klarman starting small! It is a catch 22 about building a team - you can't really do it for real without having a property. Your local Realtors SHOULD be a good source of partners but there are great, not so great and everything in between. They know tons of lenders but not all work with investors . I have used Catalyst Funding - they are big in Texas and I had a great experience with them. They are investors that lend to investors. The contractors - it will depend what you need when you need it and you will want to vet them 1 by 1 as needed. Recommendations from those in your local area are always good - you could meet some through local meetups as well.
Before you try to build your team, I would recommend:
1.Define your goal - is it long terms passive or do you have more time to say, flip?
2. Define your risk tolerance & budget - if you lost it all, would it break you financially.
3. Define your buy box - recommend a small property, no pool, not too many issues, not in a bad flood zone (in Houston that is defined as AE). Something that will be easy to exit - whether that's selling or renting or whatever you plan to do.
4. Have more than 1 exit strategy- IE: if you buy a house intending to flip and the market goes bad, have something that would be suitable as a rental as well.
5.Know the area in and out that you intend to buy in - tax rates, HOA's, flood zones (if any). Be intimately familiar with it or find someone that is.
6.Buy umbrella insurance to CYA.
7.If you do not hire a Realtor and are not familiar with contracts, hire a lawyer to look over.
8.Make sure your credit score is good and you have liquid assets for more than you think you need.
9.Talk to an investor friendly lender to get familiar with the types of products. We used Catalyst for a Hard Money Bridge loan right into a Conventional. It was seemless.
Once you have done all of that, then start running #s on houses so you know what a good deal looks like and hit the streets door knocking and making calls!
Good luck!
