Guidance on purchasing first multiunit at an auction

[Bruce Clark]

Hello, I am new to Bigger Pockets, and this is my first post. I am seeking some advice on a potential deal.

First, I'll tell you a little bit about myself. I currently hold two properties. The first is a single family home. I bought it at a very low price, moved into it, and then fixed it up. After I got married, my wife and I bought a larger home and I now rent my first home. It cash flows great, but generally, I did not buy it with investment in mind. My second property is a duplex, that I bought at a decent price and immediately rented. I bought it two years ago as an investment but I honestly had no idea what i was doing when i purchased it. I did not run any numbers or anything. I just got the loan and put a for rent sign up. It cash flows but I got lucky. These really have nothing to do with the deal I am asking about today. I am just letting everyone know that I am not "brand new" but I also am not sophisticated, i do not have teams in place, etc.

I recently have dedicated myself to actively finding deals and investing. I have been reading and listening to anything I possibly can for the past few months. I have also been talking to realtors and looking at properties. Yesterday, on craigslist, I came across a 17 unit apartment complex that is about two blocks from my office. 

The property has upside. It is that it is in a relatively good rental neighborhood. It has a very large parking lot. The exterior has good curb appeal. Every unit except one was completely renovated in 2010 (so I am told). The pictures that have been provided do look consistent.  I have been provided with the current rent rates and they total $6775.00. These projections are realistic if not maybe slightly low.

The bad thing about the property is that only 2 of the 17 units are currently rented. The realtor tells me that the owner's financing was through a government program and it required him to rent to low income tenants. Thus, the realtor says he wants to get rid of the property and therefore hasn't filled the units. This makes sense to me. I am thinking that the property may be harder to sell if it were filled with low income tenants that a buyer would be forced to deal with or evict.

So now to my question. The property is going to be auctioned on January 18, 2016. The realtor tells me that the owner "just needs to satisfy the mortgage and is very motivated to sell." I did the title search and the mortgage is for a "renovation loan" in the amount $140,000. This loan was to a government agency, so the 2010 renovation and the government agency story check out so far. It was a 10 year note at 5%. Based upon my calculation, the loan probably still has about $54,000 to be paid. I would like to run the numbers, come up with an ideal purchase price and attend this auction. (I do not need help with this.) My suspicion is that several people will be present at this auction and I will be outbid on the property. However, there is a chance that it may sell for very cheap. My problem is that I have not seen the property. I do not have a contractor that I trust to walk the property with me. I have not talked to anyone about financing yet. I generally do not have a team in place. If this were a SFH or a duplex, I could do it easily. I am basically nervous that I only have 18 days and there will be no contingencies. Given that it is such a large property i do not want to get in over my head.

Is it even possible for someone in my position to do this deal? Should I try it? What should I do or not do first?

Any suggestions, pointers, warnings, etc. are welcome. 

Thanks in advance, 

Bruce Clark