We were planning on obtaining a conventional loan and were going to put down 3 - 5%, live in the unit for 1 - 2 years then rent it out but we were unable to find a solid property.

You also need to enable "guest WiFi" where the tenant must go through a "click-through" and actively agree to your terms and conditions to obtain access.If you want to do it properly, I would look at the Ubiquity line of products.

Fortunately, I can have some availability during the day and week in my current employment with enough advanced planning to obtain permission from my supervisor.  

The original purchase transaction is documented by a settlement statement, which confirms that no mortgage financing was used to obtain the subject property.

I simply looked at my investing strategy and decided if I want to obtain my goal faster I needed to tweek my strategy just a bit to include a few flips a year. 

With real estate you have an opportunity with both high risk and high reward, become an entrepreneur, and obtain financial freedom all without needing any college education.

Looking for suggestions on the best companies to obtain pre-probate & probate leads as well as expireds.

What control of what situation do you hope to obtain?

The term does not include --(A) any officer or employee of a creditor while, in the name of the creditor, collecting debts for such creditor;(B) any person while acting as a debt collector for another person, both of whom are related by common ownership or affiliated by corporate control, if the person acting as a debt collector does so only for persons to whom it is so related or affiliated and if the principal business of such person is not the collection of debts;(C) any officer or employee of the United States or any State to the extent that collecting or attempting to collect any debt is in the performance of his official duties;(D) any person while serving or attempting to serve legal process on any other person in connection with the judicial enforcement of any debt;(E) any nonprofit organization which, at the request of consumers, performs bona fide consumer credit counseling and assists consumers in the liquidation of their debts by receiving payments from such consumers and distributing such amounts to creditors; and(F) any person collecting or attempting to collect any debt owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another to the extent such activity (i) is incidental to a bona fide fiduciary obligation or a bona fide escrow arrangement; (ii) concerns a debt which was originated by such person; (iii) concerns a debt which was not in default at the time it was obtained by such person; or (iv) concerns a debt obtained by such person as a secured party in a commercial credit transaction involving the creditor.(7) The term "location information" means a consumer's place of abode and his telephone number at such place, or his place of employment.(8) The term "State" means any State, territory, or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any political subdivision of any of the foregoing.15 USC 1692b

There are many channels to obtaining properties.