Issue next door to my soon to be rental.

[Matt Stenlund]

I recently moved to a home in rural Minnesota and also discovered the Bigger Pockets podcasts. I’m excited to dive into real estate. 

We kept our first home in town with the intention of renting it out for the long term without any real knowledge. I am slowly learning that there is a lot that goes into it. 

I will try to be to the point with my story  

My first big potential issue has come up before even getting my first tenant. The house is a single family home with a single family home on both sides. They are close together with roughly 8 feet between houses. 

Our next door neighbor, who I do have direct contact with, did a contract for deed on his house and moved to another state. The deal fell through after 1-2 months and now the house is essentially abandoned. 

His mortgage is in forbearance for now, but his plan is to let the house go into foreclosure and says he does not care about the effects it will have in his credit. 

I’ve been trying to figure out a way to purchase the house but he unfortunately owes probably double the value of the house. Owes roughy $80k where my estimate is the home is worth $40k. 

He has expressed willingness to work with me on it, but doesn’t seem to understand that it would be foolish of me to overpay. Especially by that much. 

Where do I go from here? An abandoned building right next door cannot be good for a rental property. The idea of having two rentals in the same area is appealing to me as well.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

[Matt Stenlund]

Thank you all for the replies. A short sale is not something I have come across before but I will be researching it in the morning.