Do we really want to touch a foreclosure? We have some reservations, not the least of which is imagining the hardship of the owners losing their home – their primary residence. Well, we found that the story is often not quite as clear cut: Almost all foreclosures we looked at were investment properties, bought during the housing bubble with the intent to flip.

We found them in various shapes and stages of remodeling. Some were almost completely gutted or had some remodeling work in the process, while others where almost completely renovated. We like the properties where almost all the interior demolition work had been complete, saving us that step in the rehab process.

We never know who we will meet when we get into those buildings with our Realtor. Some folks sought shelter in vacant foreclosures. There was frequent evidence of prostitution activity, drug activity, even drug production or stretching.

Very often we run into what we call the war zone: vacant, foreclosed properties that are not secured or are insufficiently secured. Scavengers have left their mark in every single building, with walls brutally ripped open to retrieve any copper piping or wiring. The mechanical equipment and appliances are often all stolen, cabinets and radiators removed… in short, the buildings are usually stripped of anything that has some resale value. In really bad cases we’ve found fire damage, whether it was arson or a squatter trying to stay warm.

One property left a distinct mark on us. The house was absolutely full of stuff – clothing, personal items and belongings, ripped off the shelves and out of the cabinets, piled on the floor 6 inches to 3 feet deep, on the first floor, second floor, and even worse in the basement. We had to climb over piles to get through the building. I remember photographs of a happy family on a summer day spread across the piles on the floor. It felt like whoever lived in that building had five to 15 minutes to gather their stuff and get out… It was eerie beyond words.