Not so much for people to read and comment on and all that blather, but shoot, if I write it down and it's public, even if no one sees it, I will know it's there and won't want the embarrassment of failure.And @Sam McPeek and @Troy Fisher - thanks so much for the very specific references on Dave Ramsey and the mindmapping / SMART goals - those types of things seem to suit me very well and are great, ready-made systems that I can plug-n-play and start creating results.

I'm a Public Librarian by trade who does a little bit of landlording on the side.

as a Real Estate investment firm would you not have the cash to fix it and sell it for a higher profit instead of having it sitting on the "public" market for months...I have multiple theories - one might involve some conspiracy - lol - but would love answers from the pros.Emilie 

You can find out about property tax records from public record.

How about trying the public records.

I suggest, really do, that you stay away from trying to read investor stuff, especially guru stuff as it will mess up your mind in learning the basics, you'll get bad and incorrect information on the internet from the general public.

Whether wholesalers are screwing people out of ignorance or intentionally, you're still screwing the public with the thinking in this thread, saying you "bring value" to the deal is pretty much LOL based on demonstrated knowledge of RE described here. 10% is plenty in putting a buyer and seller together without touching the property.

You might want to focus on properties that are accessible via public transportation. 

You can find the probate case number by looking up "notice to creditors" in your locale, found in legal publications and other online portals. 

As soon as they make a public probate filing, they are in need of help.