Today, that is still only Jefferson County, although Madison County is gaining on them.If you take the risk and take possession of the property, and hold possession for 3 years after the tax deed date (6 years after the auction in your case) then your "short statute" adverse possession of 3 years will defeat any heir's claims the tax sale was void.

You could lay claim under adverse possession laws. 

The long-term adverse impacts if this were ever to come to fruition is the loss of jobs, the loss of tax revenue and decreased property values, all of which Bissen has acknowledged.Some owners are attempting to cash out because they don't want to wait.

'Value' is not an exact science either, but the premise behind REI is that in general there is a long track record of RE growing in value.Leverage does not adversely affect your net worth or cash flow.

I’m sure there are other creative ways to put that money to work  but I am on the more risk adverse side when it comes to deposits.

The banks in USVI are VERY risk adverse resulting in major processing costs and restrictions that are costing us money. 

I think it also makes a lot of sense in many ways to invest in what you know....and that's often closest to home, but not always.Also is Milwaukee known to be landlord friendly or landlord adverse?   

Private $ is UBER risk adverse, or else they'd be playing the market themselves.

Specifically multifamily due to its resilience in adverse economic cycles. 

Just be aware of the HOA fee future.Developers typically set the HOA fees as low as possible to get buyers in.Once they turn the HOA over to a Board made up of actual residents, it's not a question of if, only WHEN HOA fees will be raised to where they should be.This will adversely affect your cashflow, so you should plan for it.