I am from New York looking to do my first fix & flip in north NJ or even suburbs of New York.I have 40K In capital, 800 credit , I'm trying to find a way to get my first deal with those numbers (If I am too optimistic let me know in the comments) .I'm at the point where I'm looking for areas and neighborhoods that I can make the most of with the tools I currently have, but I don't even know what to look for.I think I'm on the right track but any suggestions or advice would be super beneficial.

The property may stagnant in value or worse case scenario may loose in value.

This is very important if you are expecting a big jump in value in a short time an appraiser will want to see some improvements that justify the increase. 5.

It is a LONG drive but the information, the people and learning how to apply what's going on in a market that booming before ours has been invaluable. 

A HELOC on your residence can be a useful tool in real estate but I would certainly be cautious about using that up since that is what could keep your head above water in a financial crisis in either your personal or REI lives.Play out some "what if" scenarios. ie, What if someone loses their job?

@Timmy Fritz named some great other resource tools. 

That's a nice jump in value for only $10k in repairs.

There are definitely some tools that can help with managing things moving forward.

Since that time we managed to partner up with a much more seasoned real estate vet that has provided invaluable insight, mentorship and fuel to the house-buying fire.NOTE FOR NEWBIES: this person that I consider a business partner, and more importantly a mentor, came directly from BiggerPockets.

There is nothing wrong with taking the independent approach to self-managing, and while there are plenty of great PMs out there, you'll still be paying a large PM fee.Nevertheless, there are definitely some tools that can help with managing things moving forward.