This will give you an idea of the average sale price and what you can expect to get for the property if you make the necessary repairs and upgrades.Property History: Look into the property's history, including any previous owners, liens, or legal issues.

Who is responsible to pay for the HOA debt that piled up prior to foreclosure sale?

This is the tax on the profit from the sale of your property.

Whichever asset class you are looking at, assuming it is a fairly major market, there will be multiple groups (both landlord/tenant reps for leasing and investment sales for buying/selling) that will know the property and the stories behind it.  

Most areas its the big boys that buy them, especially online sales and I could not find a competitive advantage for myself

If you have that much equity in your home , one option you could do is utilize a HELOC to help fund the rehab or some portion of the property.

Purchase price: $369,597 Sale price: $475,000 New construction buyer deported due to expired visa.

IOW, even a small portion is owned by an unrelated third party. 

Purchase price: $3,500 Cash invested: $46,000 Sale price: $170,000 This syndicated investment was completed in order to meet our market's need for affordable housing.

Purchase price: $141,000 Cash invested: $32,000 Sale price: $220,000 In collaboration with our client, we expedited the liquidation of their property, which we had managed for years.