‘We Bought a Foreclosure in Florida Discounted by Over $220,000—Then Came the Renovations’

If perusing real estate listings was akin to scrolling in a dating app, Benjamin Bodenschatz, 41, would have swiped left immediately on this 1981-built fixer-upper in Titusville, FL.His wife, Cosette, a broker at Blue Palms Realty where Benjamin also works as a real estate agent, had found the house.The couple had spent years searching to buy their first home, and for 2.5 years, she had been following the listing. To Benjamin, the listing photos “weren't all that great.”But his wife was insistent.Loading...The back of the house, facing the waterCourtesy of Benjamin Bodenschatz and Blue Palms RealtyLoading...The front door, facing the streetCourtesy of Benjamin Bodenschatz and Blue Palms RealtyLoading...The living room, before the renovationCourtesy of Benjamin Bodenschatz and Blue Palms RealtyThe houseThe four-bedroom, 2.5-bath home first hit the multiple listing service in August 2023, listed at $700,000. Two months later, the price dropped to $649,000. A year later, the listing agent lowered the price again—to $529,000. Another drop took the amount to $499,000.Then in January 2026, the price was decreased to $479,000—a discount of $221,000 from the initial list price.Interestingl...