The city wants to tear the property and surrounding properties down Zillow said it’s worth 38000The city offer me 13000.I could use some adviceHard to give advice with limited information, but as a general rule, the longer you wait and the further down the line their project is the more valuable your property will be to them.Zillow (and all automatic online) estimates are very unreliable, so don't base on that.

What is the best way to go about finding these property listings online before they go to the auctions?

Check out our reviews and online pricing engine when you get a chance! 

Spend at least 2 hours per day researching online about your desired investment strategies.

But damned if I can find anything online about landlords using it!

Documenting your journey online or engaging on LinkedIn can also help expand your network.

My recommendation would be to get approved as a Landlord, contact the director's office and request that an inspection be completed before a tenant is selected (sometimes they will do this as long as you select a tenant within 14 days - which you want anyways), and have an online application and screening resource in place.  

Online metrics can be good, but they wont paint the whole picture. 

I don't like to gamble on rent appreciation.

Quote from @Zach Howard: Quote from @Jonathan Greene: If you are looking at properties in the US only on Zillow, and not seeing them in person (I know you are in Hong Kong), this is just an effort in futility because you can't underwrite single-family or small multifamily deals only online.