Even the realtor who listed the house said it was "almost beyond redemption".
But the Counsel Street home in Queenstown, Tasmania, was snapped up in just 24 hours after being listed by Roberts agent Kevin Briggs.
AND more than its asking price of $20,000.
He described the home, the subject of an estate sale, as a "renovator or a detonator".
"I think that is the cheapest one I've ever sold that you could make liveable," Mr Briggs said.
"It was a neat little block, 400 square metres, only just down the road from town.
"If you've bought it for under $25k and spend $50 [thousand] on it and you've got a good house, that's a good deal."
He said there was plenty of interest in the home, and he fielded several calls from interested interstate parties.
"A lot of people just see cheap property and have no idea what the West Coast is like.
"You buy in mining towns you gotta be aware of the risk. But the price will go back up again, as day follows night."