And be very straight with the seller that you won't go ahead with the deal if it's not approved for what you want to do with it.. meet with the township or county or whoever is in charge of planning and development.

First off, all the foreclosure information should be readily available through the County Clerk, / Records, to find the owner you can do a skip search,  I would hold off on any other purchases until you find the owner of the house, they are probably out of town owners. 

I have done a few flips for other people (As the contractor) and have really done a lot of homework on real estate, such as foreclosures, tax liens  probate on the County register of deeds.

Good Morning Angela, I am a Realtor in Florida and I understand this completely. ( I am not one of those agents) Thank goodness, I would suggest not letting them know what you intend on doing as they only see $$$ signs, and if you are looking for something off-market then their commission will be less,  I suggest looking for the deals yourself through Zillow, Make me move is a for sale by owner, your county records, for pre-foreclosures,  do your research first, then contact an agent to gain access to a property you may want. 

I do remember signing a form (I can't remember the specific form number- although I probably should) during the closing process that basically stated that the county gov't is trying to reinvest in the area, new shopping, bring in higher incomes, etc.

I search heavily around Hill Air Force Base and in Salt Lake County. 

You have to do it the hard way and go to the county recorders office and look up the 1st page of the recorded deeds of trust/mortgages.

., Canada or Mexico (initially limited to these county's due to shipping scales of economy, to be expanded elsewhere if I can get shipping costs down).I ask this question for the purposes of:Paying the lowest LLC start up and recurring costs related to the LLC.Having the least amount of paperwork required to start, and maintain the LLC.Having the most comprehensive protection for such a business (& of course, for me the individual owner of the LLC).Aside from the LLC, I will get a CA class a cottage food permit and of course pay CA taxes. 

my county only provides parcel number, legal description, and amount owed. 

I'll be attending several real estate investment meetings over the next two weeks in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego.I'm interested in meeting with other SFR long-term rental investors.