Foreclosure, Pre-Forclosure & Auction Advice for newbie

[Elaine Jordan]

Hello BP Members, I am a newbie in the central Florida area. I have yet to purchase my first property. I have spent the last several months educating myself on general real estate investing, flipping and buy & hold strategies. I am a member of the local REI club and have attended numerous meetings, seminars, etc. Here's my problem. I have looked at numerous bank owned properties with a realtor, plus several wholesaler properties thru the REI club. As soon as a REO property hits the MLS there are multiple offers on the property which drives up the price and makes the property too expensive to be a good investment for me. The wholesale properties have either been too expensive, or in an undesirable area (I don't want to be a slum lord), or in a location too far away.

So I am rethinking my focus area and thinking I need to learn more about short sales, foreclosures and perhaps auctions. Any recommendations as to the best books on this subject? Any other general advice for a newbie starting out in this area of investing. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!