the months of proceedings dragging on and stress filled,  sleepless nights, is not worth it.

5 - Do you put proceeds into an account up to a certain amount for upkeep and then split the income - monthly, quarterly, yearly?

You should discuss this with a knowledgeable CPA or tax attorney before proceeding with this type of investment. 

A seller has to go through judicial foreclosure proceedings to get the property back.  

I purchased my first house (ugly, beat up foreclosure in New Brighton, Minnesota) fresh out of college and proceeded to renovate the house room by room (entire kitchen, bathroom, knocked out walls to make open concept, tons of tiling/flooring) with my girlfriend.

If you can answer that question 'yes' then proceed to skip trace and contact in person.Many of these are not deals at all.

I've had an accepted contract and the lender still proceeded with the foreclosure.Is the contract for enough money to make the lender whole? 

So you become no better than the wholesaler you are bashing in that sense.

I definitely will not be proceeding with that contract.

At what point does the value become so great that you pull the plug and use the proceeds to buy something bigger?