you could look for opportunities with reverse mortgages in default (backwards marketing) and tax defaulted property (the last group can be difficult to sift and sort due to large quantities).In the end, you’ll do much better focusing on solving problems that others cannot or are not willing to solve (hoarding, squatters, liquidity, defective title, skips, etc.).BTW, I started with working foreclosures (1978) and then deceased owner and title-impaired property about (35) years ago and have closed several thousand deals to date.  

We've bought off of signs on the side of the road listing a property for rent - we called the owner up and said, "We know you are looking to rent it, but would you consider selling it?"

Try to find an owner financed deal and start there.

I see this section:"If the address of any record owner is not located in the county in which the dwelling islocated, the name and address of a person who resides in the county and is authorized toaccept notices from a tenant, to issue receipts for those notices and to accept service ofprocess on behalf of the out-of-county record owner(s) is as follows:"What am I supposed to do in this case?

Their site looks nice and pretty transparent, although the FAQ about pre-payment penalty is a bit vague. 

Property 1: Single familyWorth 20 - 30kNo debtProperty 2:3 familyWorth roughly 60k18k left on a 5 year owner financed deal with about 33 months remainingThe values are rough estimates.

Each guest pays $29-49 depending on property size and that provides up to $1,000-2000 in damage protection in lieu of security deposit to satisfy the owner and avoid deposits. 

Generally speaking these property owners and the relatives of the property owners are harder to reach for quite a few reasons.  

I also manage for some folks who buy $100k and rent for $1400 so there are a few ways to make the numbers work.This is a snapshot of Zillow...in the nicer areas you can buy most anywhere since you are sniping the rental-grade properties amongst the owner-occupied prices.

Key determinants include the percentage of owner-occupied units, contribution percentage for the HOA budget towards reserves, and a clean record without litigation, delinquencies, or major issues.