...What other ways can I attract motivated sellers besides yellow letters, for rent signs and ads? 

Think about what search terms imply motivation - just like in REI, where "sell my house fast" implies more motivation than "should I sell my house?"

is the home going to be used as a true vacation rental that you will offer to those on vacation  or will you be doing some sort of homeshare where you live in the home and then rent out part of it?

Hi all,I'm a young, Belgian building engineer, working as an expat in Switzerland.I recently bought my first small building with three apartments in Antwerp.After working in Switzerland, I want to find some flipping d...

Hola everyone.. My name is Larry Morrow and I have absolutely no clue about real estate..lol. I feel blessed to have found this site and I am extremely excited about learning from you guys... and gals.Thank you

As I still work in the city and commute via the train, I have a lot of time before and after work and I was curious what real estate books inspired you, motivated you, or were just an overall good read.Thanks,Rob

I'm very serious and motivated and will not waste your time.

Just general distress motivated sellers.

That being said, it sounds like you have a pretty good reason to be motivated to get into the RE world.  

Its a regrettable mistake and sucks as a first foray into RE investing. its the mistake of a new investor who maybe was just motivated enough to ignore the red flags.