You might also meet title agents who have resources on, say, foreclosures or probates…and might recommend lenders who actually lend on more difficult projects (as the title companies also know which lenders can close and which are difficult).I also go visit open houses to see what sorts of finish to put on my renovations or to look for the next house or area in which to purchase.  

They’ll check if your property, zoned R5, allows a curb cut and ensure it meets zoning regulations.

It sounds like they have been paying, maybe talking to them about your concerns can help them better meet your expectations.

Meetup is a fantastic app to find real estate meetings around you, and look for local REIA (real estate investor associations) and attend a bunch of meetings.

It will be interesting to see how lead based laws will be integrated and how it will actually affect things.  

You can always start with the Simple Start subscription and upgrade if you find that it isn’t meeting your needs.  

It also has a dashboard where you can see how far along you are with meeting the 750 hours requirement with at least 500 hours in material participation and 250 hours in general participation.

We meet definition for qualified investor.• DSTs: Seems as though returns are rather low, low transparency on opportunities (?)

Check out the events and meetups section for meet ups in your area, they are a great way to connect with local investors. 

This being said, I don't believe we'll be able to meet the income requirements to qualify for a conventional.This leads me to believe hard money or private lender is more the only option to get my foot in the door, use my business to make repairs at very good rates, build some equity then refi once the balloon is due.