I am wondering if anyone has any recommendations on well-established groups that host meet ups in north / central New Jersey. 

If you told him you have been playing pickup games for the past year and need help improving your jump shot, now he has evidence you're motivated and a specific goal he can quickly help you work towards.

Honestly, I was planning (hoping) to establish a revocable trust with my children as beneficiaries; the assets within the trust being my personal home, with my LLC which will act as a holding entity for rentals.

So unfortunately, as you scale, finding creative solutions like my colleagues above have suggested will be the name of the game. 

The investor also had no backup plan, and it was clear they hadn’t considered the potential risk if this failed - they just said "we would foreclose" - which if they did would (at best) provide single digit return...It gets even better, if they did get the borrower to follow their exit strategy, they would make around 13%...Here’s the problem: The gurus often make note investing sound like it’s just a game of persuasion, telling you it’s "easy" to get borrowers to agree to anything if you push the right buttons.

So MTRs that are close to the "action" are great.Also, I think the MTR market is getting more and more like Airbnb in Denver and Colorado, in that it's not an amateur's game.

Learning & experience is the name of the game getting started! 

@Jonathan BockWhile paying taxes is not fun and trying to defer them is part of the game - my wife always jokes that the more you pay the more you make and if someone is paying six figures in taxes - well they are making a very decent living.

It sounds like you're working really hard to make this work for them instead of measuring them against hard standards.I recommend you establish clear screening criteria.

To be a reliable and successful Private Money Lender, focus on building strong relationships with borrowers and real estate professionals, thoroughly assess each investment opportunity by conducting due diligence on the property and the borrower's financial background, and establish clear lending criteria to mitigate risk.