I am from Worcester and want to buy a place there or nearby that I can use when I visit a few times a year and rent out short term otherwise.

Go and visit a again it is a nice place and beautiful weather.

I would suggest you visit as the city varies street by street.

As a contractor I will not visit a property until it is under contract. 

That's all I visit as well and we have yet come across squatters and we take in our flashlights.

I feel like this would be a good place to purchase my first property because I visit a couple of times a year and I have a support system there.

So...2) Visit as many local (active) RealEstate clubs, or REIAs as feasible and ask everyone you meet, "who are the active investors in this part of town?"

Each day you commute to your office, turn on the radio or television, visit your favorite sites, check your email, app or visit a store to get a replacement or new part you are bombarded by more than 5,000 advertisements clamoring around in the crowded marketplace known as your head.

Your first visit as a guest is free.KCIG is no longer, but some of their former leadership team still host occasional get-togethers, including a networking event the first Saturday of most months.

My notes a usually a mess after I visit a few properties on the same day, so it helped me a lot.