College student buying first rental. Opinions needed!

[Julio Caceres]

Hello everyone, 

I'm planning to buy a pre-foreclosed multi-family property in my town. How should I approach the owner directly before the property forecloses? I like the idea of negotiating one on one before the property is taken out of their hands. I have little to no experience in real estate. I am a college student, debt free, with 10k in the bank. This would be my first property investment. The house is a multi family home built in 1900, 4 beds/2 baths, 4,000 sq ft lot, 1,500 sq ft, was last sold for $69,000 in 2003 and currently has an estimated value of $79k.