I'm thinking about buying a property through an auction and want to uncover any/all leins on the property.

There is a strong Spanish speaking wholesale market that does a good job uncovering deals.

I would endorse individual applications and credit/ background checks on each applicant as well as social media searches that may uncover information that is not formally listed in a criminal background check.  

Fortunately my due dilligence uncovered numerous red flags which are all discussed on this thread.

Thanks I’ve got to disagree with the start by cold calling advise.Yes, a “deal” can be uncovered by cold calling.  

The same risks that come with any rehab are true with rehabbing your own house: you uncover something major and don't have the money to fix it. 

That was a helpful piece of information, but I was unable to uncover or maybe just not fully understand the permit history, if permits were even pulled for the work.  

Also we are still having our strategy sessions and uncovering more savings opportunities.

That may mean renegotiating the purchase price to account for the risk you uncovered during due diligence  

saying you don't want to remove the tub bc you may uncover more unknown issues is like saying you don't want to go into the attic bc you're afraid the roof may be leaking and you may find water...in my opinion, resurfacing a tub that has "issues" is putting lipstick on a pig in some situations...i just called a contractor the other day asking for prices..500, but he said he'd do the tile surround for another 300 bucks....NO THANKS...i can have my contractor throw in a brand new tub for way less than that.