Are you planning to invest locally in New York, or are you open to investing out-of-state?

Find a rockstar agent - through BiggerPockets, Meetups, internet search and referrals you can find a realtor that regularly work with off-market distressed property.

If you visit https://www.biggerpockets.com/events, there is a section for "Community Events & Local Meet Ups." 

And I bet your local market is too.

Local REI Meetup groups - AskThey are out there, but they are hiding under rocks a lot of times and you have to turn over a lot of rocks to find them.    

search new western on biggerpockets... 

Based on my experience even with hiring contractors you may also need to do some minor project management to keep the project on track.I definitely see what youre saying about the General Contractor saving me money in the long run due to him knowing local regulations better and getting better price on materials!

A 30 second google search came up with this result saying either $2,000 or a month’s rent is the maximum.

Good luck in your search!

He has been working on properties his whole life so he’s a great resource and partner on getting the work done but as this is my first purchase and reno, I am looking for a few suggestions on finishes so I can finish working out my numbers.The house was bought from a local investor who seems to have run out of money and was offloading about 3-5 properties in my area.