If your property management company is good and has built an internal maintenance team which has set rates and had strong relationship relationships with licensed contractor which should keep costs in control, you should never need to shop contractors on your own I wouldn't think.So in short, our policy is give us your preferred contractors upfront if you have them, but then we work all tickets to resolution including dispatch, and payment of invoices.This is of course for operational expenses.  

Even if these relationships don't go anywhere, you'll get a lot from just having a couple of calls.Next I would try to find some local investment groups/communities and try to chat with as many investors as you can to get an idea how other's started out in your market.

While OZ investments offer significant tax benefits, assess property risks and long-term potential beyond the tax savings.This post does not create a CPA-Client relationship.

Union.establish local relationships

I’ve built relationships with brokers who specialize in Harlem, and one of them brought this off-market deal to my attention.

Yes but in bulk and only sourced from someone I had a very longstanding relationship with.

At R&H Capital, we’re always looking to connect with other investors, share insights, and collaborate on new opportunities.I’m excited to be here in the BiggerPockets community, where I hope to learn from fellow investors, share my experiences, and build meaningful relationships to grow our real estate ventures.

As a former house hacker myself, I'd suggest you try not to get too close (in terms of friendship) with your tenants - the tenant/landlord relationship can make it tricky to become friends.Do you have a price range or down payment amount that you're targeting?

Getting Fair deals on labor and repairs comes from developing win/win relationships with contractors.

Sold it early because of my relationship and had to move.