Drive around, ask people that live there how they feel about the area, and, if you can, live there for a year.

We get more calls with handwritten, but it's usually from people really not motivated to sell and are more curious.

Think about it simply like this, if you moved into a place that was supposed to be good to go, and the water wasn't, almost got people sick.

I’d like to know other people’s experiences so I don’t make the same mistake.  

https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/2015-04-01-biggerpockets-...Great april fools gag. many people like to do an intro to break the proverbial seal which I am ok with.I would much rather see those posts than the "what state shouldI invest in" or does anyone have documents for X or how do I transfer my property to a LLC...

I asked the tree guy if it was raining, he said "no" and that "...these people are sh#t".

And I choose locations where people would want to stay.is it risky to use a va loan then?

Personally, I wouldn't live somewhere where I have people living above me as I am sensitive to noise. 

There's too many people flying under the radar and having work done by people professing to be contractors, that aren't.

Another option would be to use a platform like Thumbtack or Angie's List who have reviews and people on the ready for a variety of services.Best of luck!