The true legal owner was a step-mother who had legally adopted the deceased and was in a nursing home with dementia in another state and a legally court appointed guardian who upon hearing she owned a house in California saw large potential dollar signs and refused to do anything.

Lila welcome to biggerpocketsMy suggestion is to interview several real estate agentsand to attend a few of your local reia meetingsAt your local reia meetings you most likely will connect with a few agent / investors ( networking )As Ned / Brandon stated - a few keyword alerts examples :~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~San Diego, Sacramento, California, Anaheim ,North Carolina, South Carolina, Charlotte, etc

However, at the moment buying anything at auction for less than 80% of retail value is nearly impossible due to the increased competition.If you do plan on buying at auction, make sure to perform a thorough title search BEFORE bidding on a property.Here are some pertinent websites to visit for Cook County foreclosure auctions:AUCTION LISTINGSIllinois Foreclosure Listing ServiceThe Judicial Sales CorporationKallen Realty ServicesCook County Sheriff's SiteWEBSITES FOR SEARCHING TITLECook County Recorder of DeedsCook County AssessorCook County TreasurerCook County Clerk Delinquent Tax SearchCook County Property Tax PortalCook County Clerk of the Circuit Court SearchChicago Building Code Violation SearchChicago Water DepartmentNFIP Flood Zone SearchIllinois Flood Maps

In my state, CA, bail bondsmen look up the case, see if satisfied and provide the recon or release in a matter of hours, often for no additional charge or $45 recon fee.

If you haven't already, make sure to visit some local RE clubs so you can start networking with contacts if you haven't already done so.

In California the deed can be signed prior to the close of escrow and the escrow company holds it until you actually proceed to closing and then it is recorded.

Hello everyone! I'm very excited to be on here and to start learning and meeting new people. I have no background in Real Estate except for that my husband is a new real estate agent and we hope to be able to work t...

Following the advice of some experienced investors on this site, I went ahead and registered for the California Real Estate Agent's course and should have my license in less than 2 months.

What can be done in CA will be different than the Midwest for example.

With any luck, some day I will have a wealth of info to share and pay it forward.I live in Yorba Linda, CA (Orange County).