If you're only going to live in the area a short time, be aware that buy and sell will come with RE agent fees which might make it cheaper to rent in the short term.  

I am new to investing as well and have learned a great deal in a short time thanks to bigger pockets and all the tools they offer.

Just stay positive throughout the experience and do everything you can to make it as attractive of an offer as possible.

I am about to start the process of shopping for conventional loan rates and getting pre-approved, but am concerned if I shop too much within a short time period it will adversely affect my credit score.Does every loan inquiry during the shopping process negatively affect your credit or is there a "grace" period after the first inquiry?

I for one just attended a short seminar on how to purchase foreclosures which tough me a lot.

I just had a tent tell me the October rent would be short $75 because of a hospital emergency. 

Likely to get the deals under market, you'll need to cultivate your own marketing program to attract sellers before they hire an agent.

Discover what attracts you and don't be afraid to dive in!

Three initial strategies would be: 1) think about how much you could sell it for if you had to ditch it, 2) how much you could rent it for as a 12 month rental and 3) how much you could rent it for as a short term rental.  

I have about $60k equity in my primary residence, so the opportunity to lower my rate slightly AND be able to reinvest that equity in another property (or two) is very attractive.