My goal was to buy single family homes in distressed properties ( short sales, or NOD leads by calling home owners and seeing if they want to sell before they go into foreclosure)  in a growing population area with strong job growth and buy, add value , and rent them out for tiny bits of cashflow and wait for appreciation. 2 main questions I have at the moment. 1) How did you pick your market to buy your first investment? 

The returned mail pieces are the best leads to follow up.....the dozen other people mailing them aren’t reaching them either. 

I am utilizing PODIO CRM for staying on top of my leads and ensuring I process them to closing in the most efficient way possible.

What I'm generally looking for is for a filter or some software that can produce a true list of "For Sale By Owner" leads. 

that works.. when you get a lead send them straight to the lender to get qualified once they are sell it to them.. same as any other transaction..

Any advice on how you found those first and subsequent properties? 

There is a concern that since the house was built in 1968 that lead based paint was used- and the house has been on and off the market due to price revisions since 2014.

Running numbers, contacting old leads to see if anything changes, going to meet-ups this week to network.

That can lead to opportunities and exposure you may not have had otherwise.

I also have a LARGE number of leads on short sales, thousands of them in Cuyahoga county.