Do you guys have any tips for maintaining my privacy or any systems you have found that work?  

I suggest:Home Depot or Lowes at 7:00 am (Tip from J Scott, that is when the good contractors show up)Local clubs and meetupsnetworking with other investors (auctions are a good place to meet serious buyers)Craig's list or other online adsStop at every property being rehabbed you see.

I found a trick: we often have wet/damp basements here in this area and use a few different basement waterproofing companies.

you should listen to podcast 77 they have some really good tips on campaigns, leads, and such for wholesaling.

Maybe talk to him and find out if he's taking anyone or who he would suggest.Thanks for the tip, Kristine.

Thanks for the tips regarding due diligence.

Any tips on good areas to target for this strategy?

Recently I've been considering purchasing $20k-50k homes that are in good condition and tenant-occupied, so my question is, does anybody have any tips for a first-time out-of-state investor?

I recently read in Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point" (pg72) that "what separates a great salesman from an average one is the number & quality of the answers they have to the objections  commonly raised by potential clients" or sellers in our case.  

Because the tax bill is in the name of my LLC now, I'm sure asking the county to bill the mortgage company would still tip them off, but you never know.