Need help on an investment decision: weighing positives against negatives

[Ru Monsell]

I have only 4 days to decide whether to attend a foreclosure auction of a single property I looked at today, and bid.
The good news: the house, though small, is relatively new and needs minimal rehabbing beyond some cleanup and cosmetics, and it is a LAKEFRONT PROPERTY!
The bad news: In Maine, most neighborhoods are mixed as to home values. In this case, the neighbors on each side have tidy, modest homes, but two doors down is a trashy looking trailer and almost equally trashy yard!
Question: Does the attractiveness of the house and the lake view with space for a dock outweigh the undesirable property you must drive past to get to it? Does this matter as much for rentals as for selling outright? I could always hope to make enough while renting to eventually buy out the trailer owners.

[Brendan J.]

I believe there to be a difference in a warzone atmosphere (which definitely discourages tennants) and honest people who are messy and don't appreciate what they have. It doesn't sound like a warzone to me and shouldn't discourage buyers, or renters, too much.

Ask yourself if it was you that was buying the property to live in, would you be able to look past the neighbors you're describing and see the value in the property? If not, then you may have reason to be concerned.