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.

Those are the players for residential...commercial the same way.

Hey stl folks, I'm a new investor . Starting from my backyard I'm looking to connect with some vets in the industry and familiar to the area/market. From investor friendly agents, lenders, escrow companies, anyone for...

Research led me to a couple of videos of former ND players coming back to build development into the area.

@Karen SmithAs jay mentioned private lending has been around forever and it’s really not on the rise - I think it’s always been a large player in the real estate investment space for short term loans.

Large and national players may treat you and your property as just a number. 

Some people seem to get locked in to one place they find, or a place a friend or family member is selling without really evaluating the available market.In a small town in East Texas I would think your biggest risk is a big player coming to town that can absolutely crush a smaller player. 

Would love to connect with local RE agents and have an idea of the market situation in SA.

Refinances are still active, slim pickings but some players are out there who are direct lenders, flip loans are also available (75-100K) min property other than conventional and gov backed loans.  

I will admit they are better than some other big players, but can certainly find better rates out there.