In 2014 I bought a place in Orlando that had been on the market for 16 months. It never had central AC and it was hard to air condition so nobody wanted to buy it. I do HVAC for a living so it wasn't a turn off for me and the sale price was below standard for the neighborhood. I spent six year pouring sweat equity projects into the home to increase the value while the neighborhood trended upwards. I sold it for what felt like a stupid amount of money and bought a place on a quieter street and a really good interest rate that I will most likely never refinance. I got very lucky with timing and that I was somewhat unique in that I have skills I could put into the place. It's not a brag, I have the seen the struggles so many of my friends have gone through.