I have looked around online, but haven't had any luck yet, i have local real estate agent there, but they are not expertised on those distressed properties.  

If you know of any online forums or organizations where I can learn from others and expand my network and knowledge on wholesaling or getting my first deal, I’d really appreciate any recommendations Thanks in advance for your help!

is there a way for me to create an online STR guestbook for free? 

They’re doing this across all online platforms. 

To managed it a bit easier (when you grow to more than a dozen), it'll be better to have one online login and manage all 'child' accounts.

You can also check their reviews online at Google, Facebook, or Yelp.

You should be able to search (if your county has online records) for your tenant’s name and/or all previous addresses listed on the tenant’s credit report.

Look at other rentals in the area and see not only how they are advertising or promoting online but also the inside and outside of the rental so you can create a similar environment to try to replicate the same results.

BiggerPockets is an awesome online community for anyone interested in real estate investing.

I live in Minnesota but have a video editing business online so I can go anywhere and there wouldn't be positives or negatives to any.