'I would never recommend this to anybody': We accidentally bought a derelict Victorian apartment for $12,000 at an auction and transformed it into our dream home

• Claire Segeren and her boyfriend bought a Victorian house in the Scottish Highlands by accident.
• They bid on the wrong property in an auction and spent four years renovating the derelict house.
• The couple now live on the property full time and rent out the apartments as vacation rentals.

This is an as-told-to article based on a conversation with Claire Segeren, a 29-year-old neuroscience graduate from Canada who bought and renovated a derelict Victorian villa in Scotland with her partner, Cal Hunter. It has been edited for length and clarity.

My partner and I are builders who plan to work on property projects after restoring our crumbling Victorian villa in the Scottish countryside.