Living closer to work saves time and money.

If she's been living there during the foreclosure and not paying rent, then she what did she do with the money she would have used to pay rent? 

For example, my appliance store gives me a 10% discount, so I charge a 5% markup to my owners to make a little money and the owner still saves 5% from retail. 

The deal has to make sense and you really need to know the comps to make sure your investment is going to actually make money.

put another way:-Go on Zillow and buy a random property in Detroit: fail, lose money, give up on real estate investing.

Slowly and surely, you will make a lot money.

Such deductions could result in substantial refunds, providing critical financial support during a challenging time.Residents may also explore disaster loans or grants offered by the Small Business Administration (SBA) to cover damages or losses.

With the money from my savings and stocks I have about 100k . 

But it also is a money pit if you don’t have the experience.  

Then, gather evidence like recent sales of comparable properties to support your case.