2) if I find local properties what are some major costs with the purchasing process and has anyone done pre-auction or direct to seller home purchasing?

I buy the vast majority of my deals on land contract and always pay my attorney the $400 for his office to prepare the land contract and memorandum of contract.

You'll quickly realize that the majority understand little about real estate but you'll also find the few that do.

If I had $200k I would invest in single family homes (using leverage by taking out a conventional loan and putting 20% down on 15 year notes) that have been sitting on the MLS for several months that had a desperate seller (someone maybe paying 2 mortgages)...this would take some work, patience, and a good realtor willing to submit a lot of low-ball offers...ideally I would shoot for nice C+/B- homes (at least 3/2's) that I could buy at a discount (buying with equity built in) that did not need too much work...maybe some updating...but nothing major like a foreclosure or something on the courthouse steps that required me to manage contractors on a daily basis.

You're in a major metropolitan market so there's a way somewhere to get it done...provided the numbers are right and your income & credit are solid.Beyond that, you can always keep the unit you are in and seek another unit with owner financing....where someone is sick of it or is retiring.  

The majority of my personal investments have happened in last couple of yrs.  

It it were me, I would want 51% -enough to show a majority interest, so you can shop for lower insurance as you stated.

I charge my tenants 650 each for everything included and a furnished bedroom so I end up with a 100-200 dollar cash flow each month (depending on utility fluctuation) So all major repairs being paid for by landlord and cash flow to me you can see why comfortable staying here. 

I'm ready to take the leap stateside to see how big I can grow this but this is entirely different to my previous experience which I'm pushing aside to start my learning anew.I've narrowed down my search from multiple states to Florida with my top 3 major cities of Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville (in order).

Even if we are not doing anything major, the small things add up.