Strategies for making a first offer in a tough market

[Danielle Turcotte]

Hi!  I'm looking to make my first offer on a triplex in Maine soon!  I'm looking for help/advice/suggestions on ways that I might be able to approach making an offer in a competitive area that could increase my potential success.

So far, there has been little on the market in the areas I am looking and the properties that are available seem to be extremely run-down with pretty severe roof and foundation issues (among other structural issues)... all asking for absurd amounts of money.  Sweat equity is not an issue for me, but I'm just not finding anything that will work reasonably.  To make things a bit more difficult, it seems that any property that comes close to cash flowing is scooped up very quickly by more experienced investors in my area, who also seem to have more cash-on-hand to throw at it.

I know markets are competitive everywhere right now and inflated prices are making deals even harder to find.  In the dearth of opportunities, how do I make my offer stand out or find ways to beat others to the punch?

Thanks!