I did this at the beginning , I took courses on how to communicate with people , and public speaking as well.

Whenever i call, they either don't want to speak , and most don't soubd like they are motivated.  

I've only looked in Minnesota so I can't speak to how Minneapolis compares to the rest of the country.  

Too long to answer here in a concise paragraph, but I think you are off to a good start if you speak with @Russ Scheiderwho I have done a lot of work with in this market with off market deals.  

I did speak with my agent and there was not much information she could find, no listing agent, just the date the bank took back possession. 

You can seller finance to another investor as a commercial loan, but you're speaking about consumer financing.As I said, read here on BP, there are a few, not many, who know seller financing as it is required to be done today so be careful about what you read on line.

My office os also in the Energy Corridor and the commute from Katy is not bad, relatively speaking because Houston-area traffic is generally horrible

IE: A buyers agent or are you speaking the listing agent?  

I cant speak for all states but the states where I own rentals there is no requirement to participate in Section 8.

The call came in yesterday from an older Spanish speaking lady from Kissimmee, FL that received one of my mailers (thank God I'm bilingual!).