Building a strong financial foundation involves aiming for a credit score of 700+, educating yourself, building relationships with agents, lenders, and property managers, and analyzing properties with positive cash flow.

This is a terrible attitude about it.

The most important factors a hard money lender will look at, if you don't have experience, is your liquidity and credit score & history (as well as your background -- no liens, judgements, foreclosures, bankruptcies, etc).I would hit up @Michael Cid -- he's a tremendous resource and is a direct lender. 

I'm building my credit so I can buy my first property.

John is it for Protection of assets or do you have other long term goals like getting a  Business Line Of Credit ?

This is a huge plus because it offers liability protection, meaning your personal assets are shielded if there are any legal issues with tenants or the property.Doesn’t Appear on Your Personal Credit: One of the big perks is that these loans don’t get reported on your personal credit profile, so they won’t impact your credit score or debt visibility.

My credit isn't the greatest being that I was running a business and didn't do too well.

The good news is that you can fill out a form, provide the receipt of the repair, and they will credit you about 1/2 of the bill

You could look into a cash-out refinance with a private lender or a local credit union.

We know it's challenging because so much has changed post COVID, fed rate hikes, etc. but that's how you avoid rehab mistakes, bad neighborhoods, and terrible deals.