I've been at it for about 8 yrs. The best advice I can give is join your local bee keepers association, talk with local beekeepers, don't necessarily belive what everyone tells you. There are people out there to make money. So do alot of reading in books not YouTube. On beekeepers way is not your way. After 8 yrs. with maybe $2,000 invested, I lost every hive I bought out of Georgia I'm in N.C.
I did everything I was told to do didn't work. Bee's always died in winter because of varroa mites. I tried the gassing with OA, it does work.
IMO, I haven't bought bee's from out of state in the last 4 yrs. and I'm doing fine , with 5 hives this yr. going into winter. First 4 yrs. buying bee's , I never had bee's in spring. So your local feral bee's are your best option. You can build little 5 frame nuc boxes , buy one old drawn comb frame from locals , place in swarm trap with some new foundation frames , and a McDonald's drinking straw cut 3" long , stuff a little cotton ball in each end with 2 drops of lemongrass extract and wait, I can also use a Boardman sugar feeder next to swarm trap early in spring to attract lookers.