I know meet GCs through trusted referrals or at trade shows. 

I  can give yu some good pointers though PMGood Luck"@Jason - I was intrigued by your response because my partner and I was literally talking about the very same topic today (absentee mailings).Part of our discussion was mailing to "owner occupied" properties with equity.Obviously there are some minor disadvantages of course such as "waiting for them to move (longer close times)", etc but I agree with your methodology of "thinking outside the box".I'm seriously interested in what you are "doing different" in terms of mailing parameters for these "owner occupied" properties.I don't expect you to "give anything away" nor am I expecting any handouts but my partner and I have dissected this subject over and over and it would be nice to have some insight from someone who is actually having success with these "owner occupied" lists.I'm local here to the SF Bay Area as well and I can't even begin to tell you how many calls I get from people who complain about receiving so many different inquiries from others trying to "buy their house".Any additional insight you can provide on the forum or via PM would be GREATLY appreciated..Jimmy

This can equip you with some handouts etc that provide everyday real estate terms.

Lenders don’t hand out POF until you build rapport.

(plus the convenience of not finding another roommate is involved so that is why discounts are handouts but rather a mutual benefit)

I see it in MA all the time entry level manufacturing being attracted to the suburbs. entry level manufacturing jobs teach basic job skills. showing up, taking direction, etc.A hand up not a  hand out for these communities. 

So, he thought, I'll stand on the corner and hand out free cookies.

On the other hand If I decide to GC the project myself I am debating back and forth as to use the same overall scope of work to hand out to the individual subs or create several specific SOW for the individual trades in order to bid the work.  

Never has worked, never will.Giving a handout would be seen as much 'nicer and more humane' to someone in need rather than asking them to WORK and get PAID. 

It was a great way to build a lot of connections and also went to tradeshows where I met a lot of trade companies, RE lawyers, etc.