Should I Buy a House that has Been Vacant for Years?

The idea of buying a house that has been vacant for several months has its pros and cons. One of the cons you'll find is that many areas of the property are neglected. The interior plumbing may have some leakage and/or the outside may have overgrown shrubs or weeds. On the flipside, the house may just be perfect for you regardless of how long it has been vacant because it's much less than the properties nearby.

Several years ago, when I was in southern California, I spoke to a real estate agent to find me a house. A few days later he gave me a list of houses to choose from. The one I selected was vacant for a long while and was listed as a pre-foreclosure property. The paint on the exterior part of the house had faded extremely, the roof shingles needed replacing, and the interior needed rehabbing. There were other things as well, but I brushed it off as minor. Was it habitable? Yes, it was.

Everything I saw was fixable given the mindset that I could do it by myself. For about 6 months I rehabbed two bathrooms, replaced the old carpets found in the bedrooms with new ones, and put vinyl flooring in the living room and hallway.

As you can see, showcased here is a vacant 2-bedroom, 1 bath, and 768sqft property located in San Antonio, TX not listed for sale. The exterior of the house needs painting, the condition of the shingles is undetermined, and the front yard shows no green grass. As to the condition of the interior, it is difficult to determine unless I step inside. ARV is between $88 000 and $118 000. How much would you buy it for?

If you're in the market to buy a vacant house, be sure it is inspected thoroughly. There could be winged creatures like bats hidden in the enclosed eaves or termites eating your rafters or honeybees too busy producing honey.