Since it is a single family home and comps may be hard to find, you could use an average $/sqaure foot in the area for 5+ bedrooms?

Or is it a pier and beam foundation with concrete/brick/stone footings (piers) and wood (beam) sitting on top of that?  

This puts me ahead of my competition.I would hit them with direct mail, text messages, cold calls, and voicemail broadcasts aggressively for a month and then let your foot off the gas on month two.

•1326 Huron Street, London Ontario (Pizza Hut Plaza)•8500 Square foot plaza purchased in 2009 for $1,750,000•Each shareholder invested $79,000•In the 9 years of ownership each shareholder was paid back the initial investment from the profits•Building was sold in late 2018 for $3,300,000•Total payout after sale of $295,000 per shareholder•Total profit of 375% of the initial investment in 9 years

The floor joists were broken (2"x8"s on a 16 foot span...).

That’s great you were able to take advantage and you’re setting yourself up on a good footing.  

Plus I feel like on some cosmic level you need to step foot at least once where you are buying.

I am in the suburbs of Chicago and mostly interested in the Joliet area.So as a new person who is literally putting one foot in the door, looking back, if you were me...at this moment...what is the one thing you would have told yourself; or done differently?

We have bought houses that we never seen the property and have yet step foot inside them.

My thought it re-parging that 40 foot section of wall might help limit the smoke but that seems like a substantial expense for an issue like this and likely won't completely solve the problem.Does anyone have experience with alternatives for minimizing smoke?