Understanding the pre foreclosure via consuming Lis Pendens if combined with employment, credit or other information sources could be interesting 

I feel if I was manually tracking this weekly that would end up being very time-consuming.

Yes, Mortgage Brokers charge for their product & services but we end up saving borrowers thousands and countless hours of headaches.I've worked for direct lenders & I can tell you one thing, they ARE NOT cheap.Some Direct lenders go & bake in as much as 4 pts per file.While working with a broker you can expect a 1-2.5% fee but that is on top of extremely slim margin mortgage pricing which is not available to a direct consumer/investor.

From what I understood from my agent, if I did want an inspection for a house it would lessen our odds in getting a property (at least in Rochester's market and the type of homes welcoming for first time buyers: turn-key; cosmetic rehabs).Everything piece of media I've consume tell me to know what kind of condition the property is in.

The process sounds complex and time consuming, and can someone leverage the time for something that's more rewarding?

With that said, I am looking to expand my investments without consuming a significant amount of time. 

We get it - managing an Airbnb is time-consuming and you’re here to help people out.

Vetting potential tenants is time consuming, but placing the wrong tenant can be catastrophic. 

Or like California a RE Broker like myself or Consumer finance license all which are regulated by the state .

There are controls like SOX regulations that try to limit manipulation, so small consumers have some form of protection.