Here's something to consider: if you have the money ($60-70K) to purchase a distressed property and do the minimum rehab necessary to make it habitable (and therefore lendable), you can immediately turn around, have the property appraised, refinance, and pull out up to 75% of the new appraised value or the amount of the original purchase, whichever is less - and you can do all of this without having to wait for the house to sell (if you're a fix-and-flipper).  

I'd make the house habitable though.

I've been to the tax assessor's office but I've had no luck in finding buyers just property information and the assessment of those properties.Is there a simpler way of finding this vital piece of needed data to get over the hump of selling my first home? 

I think clear communication and just knowing that things may and do go wrong are vital before jumping in. 

At least one habitable room in the dwelling must have a floor area of at least 120 square feet.

So as an investor, make it a habit to check the auction sites as well as the MLS. 

I am an agent and real estate developer in northern Jersey and I cannot begin to tell you how vital it is that I have my real estate license.

Once I got it habitable, I had two buddies (really friends of a friend) move in with me.

I have an engineer that travels across the country for me and does a site inspection, environmental phase 1 study, and a cost reserve stable.The cost reserve stable is where the inspector looks at all mechanicals and other vital systems to the buildings including roofs etc. and then models out based on when they think those items will reach life expectancy and need replacement.

And starting off, please don't get in the habit of saying I bought a property 25,000 bucks below the FMV as that is not the case, but you may have purchased below the ARV, hopefully.