Interested in buying abandoned houses.

Some cities ( Altanta did) but the properties had to be inner cities and you had to live in it for a certain number of years to quality.

Hi! My name is Melanie. My friend Dale is actually looking to invest in real estate. He would like to buy fixer upper's or abandoned homes and He doesn't exactly know where to get started. I think what he was asking up there is where is the best place to GET started. Are there such thing's as Grant's, and what type's? I'm a dummy here, but if you can tell me a good beginning we'd appreciate it.
He owns his own home, so he's not looking to live in the houses he's looking to buy, fix and sell them.
And on the abandoned houses thing. Is there a list anywhere on the internet or public record that would have the addresses to them and where they are located? Or do you have to just drive around until you think you found one and then contact the owner?
Thank's for any help!