Sometimes the foreclosure “rescuer” charges the borrower high 'service fees' up front and then disappears with the money without providing the promised service. .Each state has it's own foreclosure rescue/avoidance/solicitation laws.

Any good resources for learning about hard money loans?

And a deal in my opinion is one that will 1. pay for itself(All property expenses) and 2. pay the debt service(if necessary) and 3. put money into my pocket each month.  

Again, I used my parents but this time only as lenders of part of the money for the down payment.

Residential loans where borrowers do not need money but want the money (ie. they could have paid cash but want to have some leverage).AVOID:1.

Are you using your own money for your flips or do you have a lender/investor that funds your flips?

Then once you spend the money for that.. then the contractor will simply file a UNJUST Enrichment claim so your back to square one.. 

So if they can get guaranteed 5% interest in an account they can get their money out of at any time they’ll want 8-10-12%. 

My plan is to take the next six months to try and learn as much as possible about multifamily real estate, while also saving up money to be able to start a career in brokerage.

If I were the neighbor, it sounds like I'd be the only one bringing money to the table so you could get something you want.