short sale deal?

[Joseph L.]

Hello all,

Looking to try my hand a short sale I found on the MLS, the thing is it has been on the market sine June 2009 listed at $325K and now down to $230K. I know from the disclourse that there probably is termites/AC is broke and some light switches don't work.

Similar houses are going for around $255K - 320K, I haven't gone to see the house yet so I wouldn't know how much all that stuff would cost, and if the disclourse writtten in 09 said the AC was broke I am assuming he didnt fix it and there probably will be mold also? Not sure if he is still living there or not.

Can I walk through the house with my contractor to get estimates of how much it would cost to fix?

Also it is in a trendy neighborhood where the cheapest houses rent for at least $1,800 and they recently put up nice townhomes that have sold accross the street; how much will that affect the property?