In August '07, we made a lowball offer to the bank for $256K on a short sell. The place had been abandoned for eight months, inhabited by gang members who owned large, mean dogs (huge bones have been identified in backyard) and several of the front windows had been shot out.

Another buyer had made an offer several months before for $309K, but the deal fell through when the previous owner broke into the house, stole all the appliances and shot off fire extinguishers.

It took the bank five months to accept our offer, which they ultimately did in April of '08.

Nick, a real estate attorney and registered agent, assisted us in navigating the paperwork. If you're interested in doing something similar, check out his site.

We received a $6K credit at the closing for some bad plumbing and put 15% down. With closing costs, we're in for $45K.

The place needs to be rehabbed, essentially from the ground up. What follows is our story of the project...