I stumbled upon this forum a while ago, used it sparingly at first, but now I see what a great tool it is for anyone interested in real estate and investing.

Do you have the tools to address those needs?

If you are tech savvy, my title company offers a free a tool that I have (but candidly rarely use).

I have had to email/phone/leave voicemails repeatedly to get traction on deals that i have been interested in.There have been numerous occasions when even a courtesy response was not provided to let me know that another member was already working on a house or the house was already under contract(and no, the Quest tool still indicated that the house was available for members).It seems like the organization does not feel the need to send even a courtesy response if a property is no longer available for LS members .

Information and connections are solid tools in this business, as with many others.

You always sign a personal guarantee on a hard money loan, so if you default, and the foreclosure doesn't make the lender whole, they will go for a deficiency judgement.You use the tool appropriate for the job at hand.

I haven't talked to a mortgage broker yet, but was hoping to get tips or advice on whether this is a good idea before I do.

Also, while biggerpockets is a great tool, nobody here has a vested interest in the success of a fellow member, but a coach paid on the profit of a deal does.

So, the purchase price can be very close to the same, but there are less notes available too.The next issue is that the institutional types don't have as many tools in the bag as a local broker may.

Any input or general tips would be helpful!