Look for something with good bones, that just needs cosmetic upgrades (flooring, fixtures, paint, cabinets, etc).  

Bathrooms - Must be fully functional.Pools - Equipment must be functional and water must be clear enough to see bottom.Paint - No peeling paint (especially if date of construction is pre-1978).Floors - No bare concrete.

I buy oil paintings on eBay from China

And if you pay close enough attention to it you can just turn around and paint and not have to skim coat it or touch up with spackle like the scrapping method.

When I want a car I buy it from my brother who has owned his used car business for decades.I can get him to buy cheap at the auctions for cash.I also look on EBAY for desperate sellers who need to sell cheap.I wait until the auction expires and offer them a much lower bid with cash.A friend of mine picked up a BMW this way that had a market of 12k and the seller was asking 10k for 5,500.I look at the dealer prices and laugh.They are a total rip off and it makes me sick to think someone buys new or almost new and right off the bat starts losing value and having a negative investment for years.The dealers like to make the outside look good on used cars and sell you crap.I can get a new paint job and a brand new interior for a few k at most.What I care about is the engine,tranny,axels,etc.

It is a paint product - how else would you get rid of the oak look?

Then you can paint over it and wait and see.

No lead paint regulations were being followed.Is it possible this 112 year old house is lead free, or is she not following the rules?

The bulk of the listings are short sales and the same house that goes as short sale sells for considerably less than the rehab with only paint and carpet.Out-of-area landlord buyers (from areas way more expensive in So Cal) are now showing up at foreclosure sale in my areas.

I've done typical things like paint, flooring, and opened up one wall to make a better layout.