It was long enough a time period to get the business established and see if the model paid enough to cover a regular mortgage (it does).

As to your issues on contractors you used, I only use experienced and established contractors, licensed and insured, and just about all under "corporate" entities, so no need to 1099, professional investor or not.

Many of these developments are still lettered with homeowners that are underwater, banks still control abandoned properties and investors have scooped up homes being offered by motivated sellers and creating neighborhoods of renters.Will developers create new neighborhoods on the outskirts of these developments or will they steer clear of these prior areas and try to establish new Paths of Progress?

Thank you Derrick, quite frankly those are some of the reasons...establish my credibility, carve out my niche with buyers and sellers...however it's main purpose will be to lead potential distressed home owners to so they may call or complete questionnaire application and follow up. 

Best to have a preapproval letter or at least an established relationship before you get your first property.

Do you have established contractors and PM in the area?

Taking the offer" is not the same as "Accepting an Offer"; the latter implies the contract has been established (aka offer, acceptance &  consideration), the earnest money paid and the escrow for the sale has been opened.Typically between the Taking and Accepting is a flock of negotiations via Counter Offers which leads to Acceptance.

Once you are very established and have a large marketing budget go ahead and try it.

Try establishing a relationship/rapport first, determine motivation, and try to find a win/win deal based off what you uncover.  

Find some thing, and establish a firm causal relationship between that thing and the phenomenon of paying more money for a crappier product suddenly being a widespread practice.