It seems that lately buyers have been wanting to "shop" for foreclosures. The reason being they are good deals and they are being bought for pennies on the dollar. That may be true for the most part...but what is being missed are the good deals on non-foreclosure homes.
Sellers are also needing to sell...it could be a transfer...health reasons...or avoiding losing their home. Don't rule out the possiblity of looking at "regular" homes for sale. There are some very good deals out there.
Some of the benefits of buying "regular" homes?
You can get a faster response from the seller.
You get a history of the home (rather than buying "where is ...as is")
You can get items fixed that need to be repaired.
So with that in mind...be sure to look for "Spot" 
. Spot will help you "Spot" a good deal when he sees one!
Happy House Hunting!