I would simply hire a good civil that has done development in that jurisdiction and pay for a feasibility study and let them run through all the check items.. but thats really just the start.. also for context .. these projects require 350 to 750k in CASH up front to get to approved plat status ..

That's a very small inventory when especially considering buyer needs like, budget, location, bedrooms and aesthetics. 

I don't think that simply having an LLC would protect you from that Bubba the roofer.

And the fact that your post had at least three votes for it when I posted this shows that there are lots of other people who would probably be losing in PA under those same assumptions that just happen to be FALSE in Pennsylvania.Pennsylvania has some rather complicated rules when it comes to tax sales; the particular type of sale that the OP purchased at is one that does not divest any liens; it simply changes the party that is the owner, with the new owner taking title subject to all liens and encumbrances of record.With tax sales, the buyer must be aware of all the local rules under which the tax sale is being conducted, because the rules vary all over the place.Now, what the OP seems to have failed to do in his research was to cross index the recordings at the county recorder; the "missed" mortgage would have showed up on a search by parcel number if that sort of cross check was done (and assuming all indexed documents at the recorder are properly indexed of course - I have seen mistakes made attaching a document to the wrong parcel).

I know some people have the knack and others simply can't make it happen.

When the numbers were tallied, he had actually lost about $10,000–$20,000 per property.Here’s the kicker: Had he simply bought the properties for $80,000, left them vacant for seven years, and only paid taxes and insurance (about $1,500 per year per property), his all-in cost would’ve been around $90,500.

Im not advocating for this, but simply stating that it is the norm for whatever reason.

It's simply a gross-revenue-to-price ratio.)I'm thinking of a few recent STR clients.

Effectively good egg is simply a P.O. box that takes a Commission out of your hard earned/saved money, in return, for purportedly providing due diligence to vet the potential projects and sponsors, on your behalf.

If I were new I would simply stick to areas close to where I live.