I visited my parents in Colorado, and went to Key West with my best friends.

Stop and talk to folks, visit the local businesses... get a feel.

Go to REI meetings, network with other investors, visit lots of properties.

Visit them a lot, figure out what's broken and fix it.  

And they may have an investor on the deal that only cares about their interest etc etc. meaning many other reasons you may not be aware of is why they don't want the asset.if they are making a new loan to you then they will protect themselves vis a vi title insurance.. they will open escrow with subsequent title  assurances.. just make sure you check that out.. or have a good RE agent look at it .. and if your really unsure have a RE lawyer give it a once over.. it should be fairly straight forward though.

@Robert BEnnett, I agree with Nate, you need to be as sure as possible about your pro forma numbers.

After several visits in which I found feces on the floor, a growing odor of urine, and finally, an unauthorized cat living in the property, I told the tenant his lease would not be renewed and he needed to relocate (there was only two months left on his lease, so it did not seem worth evicting).Now that he is out, the smell is horrendous (you can smell it from outside the front door).

For this property, no prior visit etc, is allowed one hour before auction starts.

I don't have any problem owning property or visiting the area.

When I settle on a market, I do plan to fly out for interviews and visit some properties in person before pulling the trigger.