Given the low market values, it seems the solution many landlords have chosen is to offer land contracts for the properties or abandon them altogether.

I was into REI & stocks, but abandoned the equities after the infamous Black Monday (1987), so I concentrated on just accumulating Real Estate.

When services end, they will leave.When the property is vacant, even for a moment, that is the time to change the locks.A property owner has the right to secure an abandoned property.

A valid drivers license is required as proof of residency.2) You need some major repairs done that you don't want to get ripped off over, because you're not local and/or don't know a phillips from a flathead.3) You have no clue how to spot application fraud4) Professional tenant you failed to properly screen stops paying rent, referencing local laws you have no clue about.5) Tenants abandon your property and you don't find out until city contacts you that they shut off the water at the street because neighbor called about water leaking out of your house and running down the driveway (true story). 

There are 2 abandoned houses on the other street...

OK, will if the home owner abandoned the house isn't the redemtion period drop down to only 30 days.

Property had been been abandoned by the owners and no payment had made in over 7 years.

I just wasn't sure IF there were any proven RE investment strategies for capitalizing from an abandoned building with little to no capital.

Called bank on "abandoned" property but they havn't taken action for 3 years and probably won't becuase the county will get the property and the bank will be out at least 150k, so they have no real incentive to move on this at the moment.What I have done:1) HOA won't help at all, and had no advice.2) Low Income housing authority says they are looking into it, but no action so far and apparently the owner has to sell or sign the property back over to them for anything to really happen.3) Health department and Code Compliance department are "investigating" but no real action either.4) Called bank/servicing company, but they havn't done anything as they have no incentive and it would take 90 days to evict people anyway.5) Called police on the fights and they have come, but they are still there.6) Got the owners number and talked to him when he showed up one day (driving his lexus).

have thought about the pre tax sale route, but it's not really an option for me, as I am not local to the area I invest in, and tracing owners can be hard - most tax sale properties have been abandoned for a while, for whatever reason.