Aloha Joshua,  I deal with clouded/messy titles often and it's not my first choice as its froth with a lot of time, costs and risks. 

Prior to last year, effectively any SFR was eligible for a short term rental license.

Focus on key areas first (like floors, walls, kitchen, or bathroom), which may help you handle the costs more gradually, even if it means moving in furniture or updating fixtures down the line.Also, since the tenant left it in rough shape, be sure to document all the damage (photos, receipts) in case you decide to pursue reimbursement through their security deposit or in court.

However, the property’s cost basis (what they originally paid) carries over to you, meaning if you later sell, you may owe significant capital gains tax on appreciation.Alternatively, selling the property at fair market value eliminates gift tax concerns, but your in-laws may owe capital gains tax on any profit.

Would the value of the remodel increase the rents or the selling price that would out weight the cost? 

Pictures, pictures, pictures, especially in morning light.Indoor staging needn't be costly.

This allowed our partner, Jamari Sprueil, to move forward without any upfront costs.

Evaluate Property ConditionOlder Chicago buildings often have charm—but may come with hidden costs.

We cap the rate for utilities and actually added about 10% above our normal average this past year due to rising utility costs in our area for gas and propane.  

The process from start to finish would take four months and cost ~200k to build, with comps in the area around 355k-lender man said, refinancing would take six months as most lenders wont refinance a property unless its been built for six months, affecting the strategy to get paid out from refinancing quicker and closing out on construction loan-The property would not appraise at comps value, but at the cost it took to build, affecting getting paid out from the refinance.