Hey @Raymond Pritchett - Awesome to hear that you are jumping into the Chicago wholesale game....why did you start with wholesaling and what are you using to generate leads?

I have been in the Real Estate game for over 20+ years as a licensed professional. 

Banks want you to have "Skin in the game" in other words they want you to have your own money at risk.That said just because you can do a deal with 100% financing does not mean it is a good deal.

It sounds like in your situation, the "DST" just layered in additional fees to process a 1031 exchange.The syndication game is rigged for the sponsor - and in some ways, it should be.

@Marcos Altamirano Toriz -  in todays corporate IT world,   the game is leveraging "out of the box"  application functionality by "configuration" versus "customization".   

Securing 100% financing for a project is quite rare because lenders typically want you to have some skin in the game.

I also avoid contractors who have dedicated sales people who drive logo wrap vehicles.I tend to support diversity where contractors who were born outside of the United States or were Veterans in the Armed Forces have worked out best for us.What are your best practices for choosing contractors?

There are definitely pros and cons to each so I figured I would just lay out a few benefits and personal thoughts: Small banks/brokerages:Pros:- Some regional knowledge of the market- Possibility of more creative lending guidelines with bank specific programs- Sometimes they have competitive rates for their areaCons: - weak balance sheet (more strict on some guidelines, no wiggle room, inability to be flexible or grant exceptions because they cannot afford to hold less than perfect loans)- Can't scale with clients to different markets- Usually limits exposure to individual investors (they don't want one investor to be too big of a portion of their balance sheet)- Lack of experience with multiple solutions (tend to have 2 or 3 loan products they sell and are too niche to provide tailored solutions)Large banks/brokerages:Pros:- Large compliance departments that understand individual market guidelines (typically each state has specific lending guidelines that augment the national baseline)- Ability to scale into multiple markets with same lender (licensed in many states)- Impossible for individual investors to "outgrow" a large bank's balance sheet (not concerned with one investor's concentration)- More lending solutions available for different scenarios- Often comparable or better rates given the game is volume basedCons:- Can be more difficult to get fast responses if the bank/brokerage does not have good follow up systems in place (or if the underwriting/processing staff gets overwhelmed)- Bad large banks can feel less like a relationship and more like a cog in a factory (less personal)Overall, I have worked from both and worked with both as a loan officer, branch manager, and as an investor/client myself. 

My hopes are to network, form connections, and learn as much as I can from those with the experience and create my own path in the game.

For those of you who've done JVs whats one strong piece of advice to get in the game?