Well you will have to have a title search done and then yes the lawyer could do the rest or sometimes you just get the title company to do it all without a lawyer. 

Two of my biggest frustrations over the years has been finding and keeping good help, and following hacks around fixing their mistakes and having to work to restore homeowners faith in my profession..If Ive seen it once Ive seen it a hundred times...

We got it for $21k & the kid restored all the woodwork & floors.

I also restored a house that was built in 1920 - that was a big project!

After a roof repair and flood restoration within two months of each other I ended up with nearly $8,000 out of pocket because the rents hadn't been enough to cover those huge incidences.

Working in the restoration and remediation industry I've worked with many insurance companies but never an American Modern claim.

We also bought another building on Main Street and are in the process of restoring it to its historical beauty.

Fully restored, it will be worth 8-10x what you paid for it.  

I would suggest when you're ready to purchase a place, buy something that is either a 2 unit (or 3 or 4 unit) to live in and rent out the rest.....or be willing to rent out the basement or extra rooms in your home.

My real estate agent thinks that if I sold it now, I would net close to $400K, and we could take advantage of the tax exemption since it was our primary residence.The house was built in 1921, and is in good shape, but not restored.