They cannot do anything before we have an investigator make his report on whether the previous owner was deceased at the time of sheriff sale or not.However, I’m wondering, going forward, how do you protect yourself from this happening?

I would investigate thoroughly before pulling the trigger.

It is a basic screening tool that some investors use to quickly analyze property and determine if they are interested enough to investigate further or if they want to move on.

I also keep a local map with neighborhoods I do and don't want to invest in highlighted so when I see a listing I know right away if it's something I want to investigate further.

This is a great place to learn and further investigate investing in real estate.

I am on this site to investigate other sources for my children to turn.

An investigation should include many things, some of which touched on in the string of comments, and many others. 

Aloha,Investigate the actual quality and life expectancy of the materials used in the construction.

We use a YTD paystub and last year’s W-2(s) to calculate income several different ways:Hourly or salary income calculated to a monthly amountYTD income divided by number of YTD monthsYTD + W-2(s) income divided by the corresponding number of monthsIf these numbers vary too much, then we investigate and require an acceptable Letter of Explanation.Employment StabilityUnless an applicant has exceptional credit, we strive to determine their stability of employment to make sure they’ll always be able to pay the rent on time.

I currently use my software, but I have investigated RentPrep and liked it.