I think it is an incorrect presumption to think that all underwater property will eventually hit the market.
Lessons learned from the past several years indicate that it is folly to think some tsunami of property will come your way. Programs today are designed for institutions and/or large groups of investors to take advantage of the situation.
Joe consumer is left with the scraps that fall off the table. Quite honestly your best bet is to try to take advantage of trustee sales but you need cash to do that. Paying for a service is a waste of money. Going to the recorders is not a bad idea but for every home you find out information about you have no clue if they are also doing a loan mod or if there is some other workout going on.
So you can spin your wheels for hours, days, or weeks. I am not saying it is not interesting or useful. I am just saying that you need to ask yourself how much is your time worth?