The BEST lenders I have ever worked with (as a borrower) are, as you say, quick to respond, reliable, honest, and never leave me hanging. 

Stop hanging out with your deadbeat buddies who spend all day drinking, talking sports, and otherwise wasting away.

Once you feel like you've gotten the hang of the numbers, start putting offers in that make sense.

Kitchen cabinet handles were placed upside down, cabinet doors were installed backwards, electrical line for thermostat was ran on the inside of the bedroom exposed, trash swept into newly installs vents from the furnace, cracked tub, wall switches were installed sideways in some rooms, wall outlets were installed upside down on some walls, list goes on.

Stop hanging out with your deadbeat buddies who spend all day drinking, talking sports, and otherwise wasting away.

Hang in there. 

I think if you pick solid operators and deals, syndications offer the benefits of real estate investing without unnecessary exposure to Wall Street.

Would love to hear your thoughts on this.https://finance.yahoo.com/news/blocked-wall-street-homebuyer...

I'm debating sponsoring other areas to hang my material up.What ways do you like to promote your business?

Invest in different asset classes, sectors, geographies, operators, funds...a little bit everywhere until you start to get the hang of how to actually look at 'good' deals.