I think that your time zone plays an important role, especially if you have to compete with out of state competition.

Many chime in that a competent GC is tops on the list.

People like to do business with people that they know like and trust the trust factor is based on competency and expertise.

are you competing with new construction ?  

Knowledge builds competence and confidence. 

There are a # of really good real estate investor groups here that meet on the regular and you'll see some major players from KC that'll post of the forums from time to time. 

In my experience getting a billboard on one of my properties, you just have to call all the potential billboard players.

Sometimes hard money makes sense when competing in an offer. 

I'd rather risk that $425 on a tenant that has been paying me for over two years than take a certain loss to pay an eviction lawyer to make her leave.We strive to have the nicest units in any price-point where we compete.

Sort of a competing petition for probate against the primary probate case.