@Jason Slater, I'm not sure that it matters what environment we are in when it comes to finding opportunities.

Big fish little pond.

Now this may be an issue if you are hiring an electrician to fish wire in a plastered home because this is an extremely hard project. 

We've been renting rooms, so we're actually moving from a shared living environment to our own private unit.  

Unless you have a direct line to the REO manager for that particular institution and even then they normally list it and don't even take initial offers for a period of time (5 days is average) in an effort to create an environment that drives the price up.

My wife has been doing base cost analysis for the renovations (she's an interior designer/architect) and is up to 47k on rehab with the list mentioned above.So there is wiggle room in the rehab budget but not much wiggle room on our end for the purchase price.Do I have my eyes set on too big a fish to tackle as a first flip?

I have heard 4 to 10@Matt Fish Thanks for your response.

Look at the situation, asses your goals, and determine the sellers goals as well as the lending environment then make a decision.

Also be aware the vacationers expect a hotel like environment and the higher end you go, the more amenities and service they will expect.  24-7 maintenance is an issue and they will call you or hopefully your property mgmnt company if the towel rack becomes dislodged.  

I'm from Canada so I the new market environment gets me really excited as I'm now seeing all of the investment opportunities and capital growth potential that the gulf coast area has to offer.