The flashlight swept across what should have been an empty cavity and landed on a fully furnished motel room. Not abandoned. Not stripped bare. The bed was made with crisp …
A Roadside Motel I Bought For Almost Nothing At A 2024 Bank Auction, Outside Barstow, California Read MoreWhen I pulled the bundle free, I expected old cash or forgotten deeds. Instead, it was a weathered canvas package tied with fishing line and wrapped in oilcloth. Inside were …
A Lake Cottage I Picked Up At A County Auction In 2023, Outside Coeur D’Alene, Idaho Read MoreThe beam of my flashlight landed on dozens of photographs pinned to the hidden wall. Not family portraits, not old keepsakes—pictures of the mill house itself, taken from the same …
An Old Mill House I Picked Up For Almost Nothing At A 2022 Tax Sale, Outside Lancaster Read MoreI stopped breathing because behind the cabinet wasn’t a hidden room or a stash of cash—it was a narrow stone alcove lined with dozens of glass jars. Every one of …
A Farmhouse I Bought Sight-Unseen At A County Tax Auction In The Spring Of 2022 Read MoreInside the box were dozens of letters, tied with faded blue ribbon, along with photographs we’d never seen before. The woman in them was our mother, years before she met …
When My Brother And I Read MoreInside the toolbox were dozens of letters, old photographs, and a stack of notebooks wrapped carefully in wax paper. The coffee can was packed with more photographs and newspaper clippings. …
When I Bought My Place Outside Fargo Read MoreWhen I pulled the bundle free and unwrapped the oilcloth, I expected cash, jewelry, or maybe old documents. Instead, I found a stack of photographs tied together with a faded …
A Lake Cottage I Picked Up At A County Auction In 2023, Outside Coeur D’Alene, Idaho Read MoreThe address inside the final letter led me to a small town nearly three hours away. After weeks of searching public records, old phone books, and social media, I finally …
A Duplex I Bought At A Bank Auction In 2023, Outside Toledo, Ohio Read MoreWhat spilled out of the pouch were dozens of gold rings, a handful of old lockets, and a wedding band wrapped in a scrap of paper. But it was the …
The Chest of Drowers Read MoreIt was a stack of letters. Dozens of them, tied together with a faded blue ribbon and packed inside neat cardboard boxes that fit perfectly into the space behind the …
A Foreclosed House I Picked Up For Almost Nothing At A 2022 Bank Auction Read More