It was an aging rancher that had been on the market for two years. It was on 1 1/4 acres in a prime Arlington neighborhood, but the yard was overgrown and the house was a mess: The interiors had a musty smell from being empty for so long, and a rickety pool enclosure seemed about to fall down.

“It was being promoted as a tear-down,” said Maggie Grant, the current owner. There were no pictures of the house in the sales materials — only the land plat.