Leaving out auction and foreclosure costs for a second, when you write that check for $220k the trustee is going to pay BigBadBank the $175k they are owed first, then he's going to pay LittleBadBank the remaining $45k, and you will get a clean title as the process is going to wipe the slate clean.

I know that's what you started this thread for. 

You don't have to spend a fortune and buy a house directly on the beach to do well, but your starting price point for a viable option in this market is around $350-$450k for a solid 2-3 bedroom oceanfront condo or around $500k for a 3-4 bedroom house within walking distance of the beach. 

Quote from @Argel Algura: Hey Bigger Pockets Community,A year ago I wrote about rebuilding and starting over in life and considering real estate investing as a path (see post here: "Bad credit, minimal cash and starting over in life . . .

Write it up to an education, spend some time sharpening your support team (particularly in the trades) and start thinking about how you can do it again!

Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free).

BP is actually a good place to start.

other posters have started threads saying they're going to buy STRs for tax savings... and this doesn't make sense to me.  

Just started with Cohost July.  

Knowing your current state comps is a great place to start and a real estate agent can help pull those figures quickly.