That, for me at least, is cash flow. 

That's not to say that I'm under the illusion that I have any kind of comparative advantage over other investors just because I'm not afraid to gut a house to the studs, but I do believe it puts me at an advantage over most people looking for homes to actually live in.

We're vegetarians, almost vegan (avoid dairy), so we've discussed the challenges of raising a child around everyone else being meat-eaters in our circle, we really need to find some vegetarian/vegan friends so he has some little veggie buddies that won't hassle him

Around the same time I joined the Navy which kept me at sea more than I've been in land over the last 4 years which has really kept me from being more involved.

Also, are there auction experts out there that bid for investors/buyers like me at the auction, for a fee?

@Kashiff Miles catch me at lunch today or give me a call later today and I will show you some of the things I used to build mine.

I really want them to pay me AT or before settlement otherwise they'll sell the properties and declare their LLC bankrupt.

Sorry to say, but much of all that is the  fire hose.Like any industry you begin by learning about the product and the rules of the industry.You need to learn real estate basics before you try to  learn how to deal in real estate.I suggest you get a text book  for Realtors to study for their license, that is the meat of the industry in all states, but states are unique.You'll then find out that real estate is unique and is not dealt with like personal property.

Absolutely no meat left on the bone.

Not being prepaired I did not have any contracts on me at the time.