We absolutely cleaned up with one (dealer had illegally hidden it, turned up on a Carfax check, suddenly the price dropped another $600 -- from $2200 to $1600). But we both know cars and both can work on them. I drove that car for over 100k miles, then got rear-ended at a red light by an idiot in an F250 and got an insurance payout of more than we'd spent originally, while we kept the car for parts (bought another one).
But the trick is knowing cars and being able to work on them yourself. That said, I just ran an Edmunds appraisal for a Forester n average condition with those miles, and you're not getting much of a discount for that salvage title -- $2000 off the average price from and individual, and a little under $3k off dealer price. That $12k you quote is the trade-in value. That's not nearly enough discount for a salvage title.
Also, check the laws on salvage titles where you're going. If the dealer had not rehabbed the one we bought, we would have been screwed with the laws here.