Insurance premium of $1,200/yr seems a bit high, at least compared to what I'm paying in Maryland. 

What would be the most efficient way to do this?

Super professional and efficient!

The REO world has several differences compared to retail Real Estate.It is common for the listing agreement of an REO property to have unique or interesting provisions that allow an assigned agent to continue marketing a property as active (even when the seller accepts an offer) until that buyer has performed and the property is sold. 

Honestly, I am looking at cash flow and appreciation as well, I think the RE prices there are very low compared to anywhere else in Southern Ontario and there is a fair amount of room for appreciation.

How do you more seasoned investors go about getting comparable sales data for a potential off market deal? 

They are a great resource at a reasonable price comparatively.

Find and adopt a system you follow consistently (networking, generating leads organically, managing your database, managing your time, managing your marketing effectively and cost efficient) 2.

Based on my experience, the most efficient way to shield this is to have an insurance.

At a very minimum buy your own crummy router instead of paying for theirs over again every year.you can also try adjusting the wifi to use a different channel. search the app store / play store on your phone for wifi analyzer. connect your phone to the wifi analyzer and it will show you the relative strength of your network compared to others in the area causing interference.