Ideally investors who have multiple properties with you.

I've purchased several books as well as attended multiple webinars to further educate myself in real estate investing.  

@Don Konipol: Are you using multiple lenders (i.e., lender A for Series A, lender B for series B, etc.?).

If you plan on managing properties yourself, it will become a full-time gig as you scale.Figure out what you need -- If you're a DIY kind of guy, you'll need deals, financing (multiple types), realtors, contractors and sub-contractors, appraisers, handymen, etc.Compare the two -- Doing it yourself provides excellent learning but requires a lot of time and trial and error.

Owning a property in urban areas is perfectly fine as long as the numbers make sense.I use multiple online tools to find listed, unlisted properties in Minnesota and have properties in and outside of Minneapolis (200 mile range). 

I have started and owned (still do) multiple businesses. 

I would use a broker, as they have access to multiple insurance companies, rather than going to a single agent that represents a single insurance line (like Farmers).Andy

I have been researching first time home buying and read that its important to speak toh multiple lenders, however she made it sound as if he handles all her clients and in order for the process to go smoothly we needed to go through him as well.  

Or is it a good idea to have backups and always get multiple bids.

We work with multiple lenders that offer 65-80 LTV additional with Mezz financing.