My goal, over the next five years, is to utilize real estate in lieu of my current hourly consulting income, by building a portfolio of rentals.  

I’m looking to connect with experienced spec builders who have utilized hard money lenders, private money, or even grants to fund their projects.

The best thing to do here is utilize what's called a DSCR loan.

A lot of lenders used to apply 35% for expenses, but in the last several years, the numbers for supplies, labor, utilities, taxes, etc… have increased significantly.Also take into account the age, occupancy and how has the property been maintained, this will affect the expenses too

Estimate utilities and figure out who pays them (separate meters, landlord paid, etc)5.

Kudos to you for utilizing and actually finding deals on FB.

Most likely raising funds from passive investors would utilize a Reg D 506 b or c safe harbor exemption from registration.  

Best of luck on your continued journey, HELOCS can be a great tool to utilize untapped equity in a house.

Or find a property that is under-utilized or has below market rents.Otherwise, you could also do the OPPOSITE of the great advice from @Jonathan Greene and buy a property with multi-bed units or live in the larger unit and rent out the smaller unit - while getting a roommate(s).

That's just the max they will pay for rent plus utilities.