As I said, things go for high prices here in the Madison area.I'm seeking opinions: should I have offered a higher max bid in my escalator or did I "win" by not getting an accepted offer?

Don't just get one person's bid, get a lot of bids from these banks.

And yes, the rule is to stop messaging and comes in wake of my disclosures about things like $225,000 in overcharges by a former manager which slipped by the board, and the letting of a five-year, no-bid contract for which there was no competitive bidding as required by law.  

I have a very good understanding of how the sale works and I have attended and went to the free seminar they recommended before you bid on a property.

REO's are ordering multiple BPO's and CMA's, and in many cases they are getting rehab bids and even doing the rehabs & selling on the retail market. 

With gale force winds outside and an hour and a half drive one way, I opt to bid without even driving by. 

I'm sorry not to get anybody excited, I'm specially talking about Alabama (Jefferson County to be more specific there was a lot of talk about changes in excess bids of Tax Delinquent Properties and they had a lawsuit judgement in 2007 and the county lost $28 million case for excess over bidsJust wanted to know if all s still the same with the Jefferson County Alabama allowing 15% of the value of the property to over bid the taxes owed and receive 12% int. on their entire investment when property is redeemed .Blessings to all,

Everything takes WAY longer than you think, (more than double), costs WAY more than you think (experienced builders are having subs who won't hold a bid longer than 4 days because of material costs skyrocketing)  and is more complex than you think.  

I recently won a bid at a Tax Deed auction in St.

You'll have to have the cash for the rehabs up-front, but basically how it works is you put your 25% down and get the 75% from the lender to acquire (there will be points and fees as @Christopher Phillips mentioned), and during the loan process, you'll provide bids for all of the work needing to be done to the property.