I got a deal on labor as I know the contractor personally and helped out a bit with the project.

These are usually from personal connections we have made through the years and the investors usually want proof of experience to participate in any deals.Can you recommend any lenders in particular for SBLOC product?

And always check social media for red flags and I agree with Vince, always meet a person.  

It can be a very good market, but the why behind your choice may help us give you better advice on how to move forward.Before realtors and property managers, you really need to meet other investors so you are making a good move by trying to do that here, but it would be better if you could do it in person.

Lenders often include a portion of the cash flow in the investment property as income to you personally to offset the DTI. 

Great for personal residence but not for scaling.  

I want to start smart and scale up as I learn the ropes, but I’m personally struggling to narrow down which area to focus on.If you’ve done this before, what advice would you give someone like me?

Do you think using lexisnexis would work for skiptracing to find a person's phone number?

Simplify the structure as much as possible, have clear roles and responsibilities that are not overlapping (meaning only one person is allowed to make certain decisions) and a clearly defined exit plan.

Right now, the best offers around me are for some 1.3-4 million, that only generated around 100k per year gross, so there would be a high chance of not cash flowing, and paying money, especially with a commercial loan (these buildings have more than 4 units).I was thinking that although the rental itself does not generate money, I would be able to deduct the mortgage interest, and depreciation from my personal w2 income and would be net positive.