I want to make sure I look my competition in the eye and see who I am dealing with.

There are A LOT of investors seeking property in Chicago right now, so you will have a lot of competition. 

@Stephen Herbert, the hard money market in MA is much more competitive than that. 

Not being a jerk, just trying to paint a picture of the reality in most hot markets.Maybe you'd have less competition in Colorado Springs and could scoop something up there. 

More competition will only make all of our options better. 

those areas may have more competition there. 

Unfortunately, there is no way 1 program can be the most competitive in all of the states all at once.2)  If you choose to get the best premium for each location, you are better off pairing up with an agent in each region. 

Those rates won't likely be as competitive but they will give you cash in hand and possibly ease compared to a traditional bank.  

I can tell you that as a land investor I know folks who work in the AZ area, it's super competitive for land investors and they need to be acquiring the land around 25% of the "for sale" like kind property.  

There's a lot of competition and folks willing to pay a lot of money to have their slice of paradise in the mountain communities.