Found a deal (possibly)

[Vaughn Cruz]

Hello BP,

I am a new investor and have found a deal out of state.  The seller is very motivated and I am confident I can get the property at a cost of around  30,000.00.  It is a duplex that has three bedrooms and one bath on either side,it is in a good neighborhood close to downtown where average rents are pretty high.   It is a older property,late 1800s.  how can I find out an accurate extent of repairs needed for the property without putting it under contract?  or should I just put it under contract to get an inspection?  I feel like the land and location alone are worth the purchase price even if I had to demolish the place..opinions please! thank you

[Adam Lang]

If you make sure you have an inspection contingency you could make an offer and back out later if the inspection was too bad. Also, you should ask for a condition report if the seller has one, this would tell you all the things the seller knows is wrong. For additional protection you could have a low earnest money amount so even if you backed out without cause the loss wouldn't be too bad. If you have time bring a contractor in to estimate repairs before submitting an offer.