Is that a bad idea?

They'll probably hire a bad contractor causing this place even more danger than it could be in now.

These are things that should be thought about in the good times too so that business can ride out the bad times...Anyone else have some cost cutting ideas to share?

I believe that we're in a perfect storm of events that will make the next few years truly historic (in a very bad way).Mike

Is it a bad ideal to pick up this property this time of year?

I wish I was only 25 years old and had your experience, because this is the part of the RE cycle when a lot of people are going to get very rich.Not many of today's investors experienced 1989, but I did and it was not quite as bad as today's crisis The reason being we didn't have all the sub-prime loans to contend with, but it was still bad.Good luck,donrock

Personally, I don't like dealing with homes in bad neighborhoods, nor old homes unless they've been or you are going to rehab them.

That said, I do not know if what you presented is a good thing or bad thing, scam, or solution.

It's taken me a long time and I've wanted to quit, but I also want to do this so badly and if you do too, then it will happen.

Remember, landlords want the vacancy filled so it's also in their best interest to get the lease signed 3 days prior...you backing out is a bad thing for them, even with a holding deposit they're likely to lose money.You still have leverage.