Greetings (and help needed!) from Baltimore, MD

[E Wick]

BP'ers,

Greetings from Baltimore, Maryland. I've found your very impressive community, learned a ton just by reading, and would like to introduce myself and tell a bit about me and my situation.

Although I've always been interested in real estate in the abstract, in terms of ownership, I'm a complete RE newbie. In looking for my first home (ie, primary residence) via "traditional" means (ie, with an agent), I came across a home I liked. We had looked at 50+ houses, all in my neighborhood, and I was ready for the search to be over. We put in a bid ABOVE asking price (house was underpriced and still worth it at higher amount), then found out this was an undisclosed just-purchased short sale and in spite of my excellent loan qualifications, no one will touch this for a mortgage due to Fannie/Freddie, seasoning, etc, excepting a "portfolio" lender at highway robbery rates. The seller was uninformed and wouldn't work with me, I spent 30 hours due diligence and found myself learning about buying directly form the bank, etc, ie, if he paid $148,000 for his house from the bank, why can't I buy one of these also???

In tracing the court records and speaking with the Auctioneer, the specific property was auctioned July 2 but has not been ratified, I've got the previous title holder seeing if he can intervene (ie, if I can outbid the investor who now has the home listed... since sale hasn't been ratified but will be soon), but I think it's gone. Seller lists an "exclusive right to sell," perhaps it’s a 2x-close.

If anyone has any suggestions how I can still obtain this property- the investor is in for a surprise when he learns he can't flip it due to newly strict rules (ie, Fannie/Freddie adopting FHA seasoning as of last 3 weeks), I am all ears and will EXECUTE your advice.

I've ordered John T Reed’s Distressed RE Times and Residential Acquisition Handbook and just want to find a good place to live. I can pay more than an investor since I don’t need to flip it- short sale/REO/ or foreclosure auction seem possible routes; I did phone Suntrust who wouldn’t provide their “distressed listâ€â€¦ Perhaps I should contact title company? I'm all open to other suggestions.

How would you advise a 1st time homebuyer, with a couple weeks time to invest in process, to find deal in specific zip code?

I realize this is a very, very broad request and will gladly answer any narrowing questions and elaborate based on feedback.

All assistance is very much appreciated!

EWick