As much as I like coming in here and contributing what I can - I only have my alt e-mail listed and no ph#.  

As Bill said you are getting into a very popular type of real estate right now.

The E- Myth by Micheal Gerber- It has to do with business in general but I found it to be very useful. 

However, we do typically quickly analyze and look mostly at D/E (Debt-to-equity) of the borrower as well as their current ratio ( current assets/current liabilities).

Many folks believe that because Chicago is much more diverse in its industries, economy and has better job creation strengths, that Chicago will be immune from Detroit's death spiral of (a) borrowing and pension debt, (b) failure to control the costs of government, (c) loss of state revenues, (d) bad public schools and (e) ever increasing tax burden for working, middle class families.My interest in this question stems primarily from the dramatic price declines in Detroit real estate prices before its municipal bankruptcy. 

@Jonathan Lopez  just use normal buying protocol.. find house,,, if you like make offer,,, once accepted have it inspected by 3rd party company... ( have your mom attend the inspection)  if it all checks out and your paying cash.. you can do everything with scan and e mail and wire closing funds... some fed owned properties will require a few docs notarized which is a hassle but them just have title company send you preaddressed and prepaid fex label... pretty easy these days... buying remotely is no problem when your paying cash.

Plus, if they smell that you don't know what things should cost they'll rape your wallet.  

Now, I have to E-Mail my new Russian girlfriend, she's a 26 year old model and needs only ten thousand to get out of her modeling contract and get a ticket to come marry me!

@Hersh M.Unfortunately that graph wouldn't prove anything other than the fact that Bigger Pockets has become more popular due to any number of factors - potentially including an increased interest in real estate investing from the general public, but also from Bigger Pockets expanding their content, ranking higher on google searches, word of mouth, etc.

I would try to contact them via e-mail to avoid the hassle of trying to make international calls (and paying for them).