As for property searches I use Zillow and Realtor.com to find homes in the area, and then talk to my real estate agent. 

Many people talk about local lenders being easier to work with, has anyone used lenders that are local to them vice local to the property? 

I talked about good cap rate, potential for appreciation.

I wanted to try and talk with him to get a better idea of what he is selling and see if its worth my time to push forward. 

I have even flown to other states to meet with clients.. ( of course I had talked to them on the phone. but it was big enough timber deals that I wanted a face to face and whats 1k bucks in flight car and hotel if I was going to make a few hundred grand on the deal.. its simply the cost of doing business. as this is all I do .I never did not close the deal when I made this unique effort..

or talk to a property manager, or like us watch for "For Rent" signs and how long they are up.

@Mike Hanneman I'm not incorrect, we're just talking about different things.  

@Matthew Dawes hey I live in Kihei if you want to get together sometime and talk about our market don't hesitate to contact me.

I have talked with a mentor but have not had great results with him responding. 

Have you talked with an engineer who specializes in laying out subdivisions to review your plan?