I am a new real estate entrepreneur searching for multi family homes in SE Michigan.  

I don't have any desire to own many units in different cities; I would much rather invest here in my own neighborhood.

A local agent placing renters will have the best knowledge of current prices and tenant expectations - they may be able to give you advice on desired upgrades you may not have considered which will get you better return for your renovation dollars. 

In conjunction with your own searches, network with a local agent (you can probably find someone on BP) by e-mailing them or taking them for coffee. 

However, hiring a property manager also takes some effort and you should never grab the first person in the phone book or the one with the lowest fees.You can start by going to www.narpm.org and search their directory of managers.

I'd do a search for "Best Places to Retire" or "Where Millennials Are Moving To" or "Where Job Growth Is Highest".

Bigger Pockets is such a wealth of knowledge that it is easy to get somewhat lost.You can search forums by category and scroll through the most recent for interesting sounding topics or search for specific keywords.  

They must do a title lien search and contact everyone, #1 #2 anyone that may have an interest in the property.

Whether you are a Realtor or not, you can send "Yellow" letters to the neighborhood your buyer desires and try to get some off market properties.

The  association I'm in has a program we use that has these properties already listed there but in the South Florida area.But for you.....I read in the book Wholesaling Bible, "To get a pre-foreclosure list you have two options: (1) you can put the list together by going down to your local county government office and searching for and finding the recent lis pendens or notice of default findings; or (2) you can buy the list from a pre-foreclosure list provider/broker."