Consequently,  there's rarely enough of a deviation in price between these auctions and what you can buy on the MLS/elsewhere with full diligence capabilities to make these transactions worthwhile. 

This is like buying any other property, it is valued at whatever the market is.  

Split the $20 to buy yourself lunch and dinnerIf you are on the road, daily per-diem should cover a lot of your day to date living costs.If they send you on the road, you can potentially airbnb your house.Best of luck!

Buying a large new build home can also work well as a house hack as you can charge a premium rent, and generally most bedrooms built now a days have en suites (at least in my market).  

As always, DYOR (Do Your Own Research) The area has a mix of stable, long-term residents and rental demand—especially with Section 8 tenants—but it does vary block-by-block.Key things to consider are Rental Demand, Property Condition and Management (a local property manager can help navigate tenant screening and city requirements)It’s not as bad as the headlines make it seem, but success here depends on buying right and the right property manager.

Then generally the best advice is to buy in the best area that you can afford, even if the cash flow isn’t as good in year one you will get more market appreciation in equity and rent growth in the better area.

That way whenever you do find a deal you'll already have a list of buyers that are ready to buy and get a deal done. 

Just want to make sure the folks running this are not buying helicopters and jet planes with our investment.Comments welcome.   

I warn people over and over and over to know what they are buying and to go personally see what they are buying. 

Quote from @Luis Herna: Let say I am a licensed real estate agent in oklahoma and there is one buyer in new York wanting to buy a property in Texas.