I’m not very familiar with the local market and would love any insights on promising neighborhoods for living and investing.I successfully acquired both of my current properties off-market without the help of realtors, but I'm feeling a bit stuck on how to navigate the Ocean County market.

Also you may know me for my educational events and mentoring programs and as I  have mentored some of the most successful apartment syndicators out there... 

Hi Jake, thanks for the reply and I congratulate you on two successful house hacks!

I currently own a successful rental portfolio that I grew to over 7 figures.

I joined believing the community was here to help its members make such decisions, (smartly), and in some cases, partner together to improve the probability of success (and learning for the newbie!).

Training in the brokerage teaches you how to be successful.#3. 

What strategies do you use to build strong relationships with private money lenders, and how have these connections influenced your investment success?

That said, it can be done and done successfully if you plan in advance, build your team (contractors, subs, back ups, lenders, credit with suppliers, escrow/title, real estate attorney, mentor, etc.) get educated on finding (marketing) for deals, rehab costs, locations, market data (like crime rates, school ratings, population growth, job growth, etc), specific market insights like what is most popular and sells for the most in your area, etc

In my experience, the groups with long track records of continued success have always allowed their success to speak for itself.  

Personally, I think most agents fail because they lack an environment to work within that actually wants them to be successful (no where to go and actually work if they want to work or learn the business).