Foreclosures/ Off Market Deals in Oregon

[Eric Spond]

Hello BP Community!

I recently purchased my first SFH as my primary residence and have been researching ways to jump into the real estate game. I live in an area of town (Salem) with a mix of new construction and homes that were built back in the 70's and 80's. Once I hit the two year mark in my current residence, I plan to turn it into a rental. After that, ideally, I would like to do a live in flip (SFH) for 2 years, then convert the house into a rental and purchase another home in need of work, then repeat several times. There have been several houses flipped around me and I never see a for sale sign up until after the rehab work has been complete. I spoke to one gentleman last week who made it clear he was a "restoration company" not a flipper. Not sure there is much of a difference. I asked him how he acquired the house and he said it was a foreclosure. He seemed to dance around the actual source he got the house from. He mentioned that he gets most of his homes from attorneys. So my question(s) is....

How do home flippers buy houses at such steep discounts? I've seen homes on places like auction.com and other websites, but what is the primary method/source of purchase? Has anyone in Oregon purchased a home in pre-foreclosure? Is that legal to do in Oregon? Is there a way to approach a foreclosure attorney to see if they have clients who are losing a home and would rather sell before losing the property?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.