Bought a house cheaply. What now?

I think it will be difficult to answer your question in general because no one can assess the location and condition of the house. Therefore, it is unclear whether your friend just got lucky with the foreclosure, or whether there were valid reasons why no one else placed a bid. The latter is more likely, but the former is also quite possible. Maybe the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

Reselling at a higher price will be difficult because one must assume that there was a reason or reasons why interest in the property has been low so far. Speculation tax has already been mentioned. In general, the costs associated with buying and selling consume a large part of the profit, if any is left at all.

Renting out would certainly be an option if the location allows it. I would probably not lease out the pub anymore, but if possible convert it into living space as well. Regarding the renovations, it depends on how much urgently needs to be done, what it would cost, and how well you can rent it out.
Acquaintances of mine own several older houses that they renovate and maintain little by little through their own work. They always rent them out to people they get through the authorities. So basically no luxury residences for a specific clientele, but the rent comes in relatively steadily if it goes directly through the authorities. Not really my thing, but it's something to consider.

"Long story short" answer: It depends.

Well, since the house was sold at a very low price, I assume it has a poor (micro)location and/or a corresponding condition. The house probably isn’t worth much more than that. I can’t say which option is the right one. Go through the house with a professional and have them point out the defects. Look at how renovated houses are selling. Do you need financing? Remember capital gains tax. It cuts the profit in half.

Thank you for the answer. According to the appraisal, the market value is higher than the price we bought it for. There were only 4 other parties present at the foreclosure auction (maybe due to Corona?). One of them was the mayor, who was apparently just there out of interest. And the others were, to my knowledge, from the local area... in its current condition, one could certainly live in the house, at least that was the impression during the first walkthrough. Some acquaintances who know a bit about it have already looked at the house and said it was a good price. But yes, thank you, we will go through it again with a professional. I will also follow the other advice. We definitely need financing if we want to renovate everything at once, and other than that, we haven’t thought much about it yet, since it has only been clear since yesterday that he won the auction. My boyfriend and his father can do a lot themselves (the father basically renovated the family’s house almost single-handedly back then).

So the market value is, according to the appraisal, higher than the price we bought it for.

"Market value", "appraisal".... are extremely elastic terms. What you actually get, when, or after what own measures is up in the air.

There were only 4 other parties at the foreclosure auction on site (maybe due to Corona?). One of them was the mayor, who was probably there just out of interest. And the others, to my knowledge, were from the town itself

....in court proceedings or other auctions, there are always people sitting around who would otherwise be bored. If they had been interested parties, they would have probably bid at least once.

Some acquaintances who know a little about it have already looked at the house and said it was a good price.

...acquaintances with "little knowledge" have given a positive judgment... well then cheers, will they also pay if it turns out otherwise?

higher than the price we bought it for

...I thought HE bought it....

Your friend bought a house without any knowledge and without a solid plan because he just wants to make money somehow. Are you serious? Wow, is that courage or is it called something else?
Whatever he/she decides now, he will at least learn something from it and maybe it will pay off.
Obviously, neither tax nor construction aspects were properly considered, but he acted out of pure profit-seeking/greed.
I think your friend needs something other than a house-building forum. And... a price usually has a reason, the cheap one as well as the higher one, even if the real estate layman may not have noticed it at first glance.
Your quote "House cheap - what now" is really the highlight of the week...... and comes right after "Child, what now" or "Money gone - what now? Sorry-

Haha, yeah, it’s clear that my quote causes a stir (that’s the point). Well, my friend is definitely one of those who are more willing to take risks (the motto being, nothing ventured, nothing gained); so far, he’s done well with it. And since he only offered for the land value and knew the house and the evaluation, he thought he couldn’t go wrong with the lowest bid. Of course, we don’t know how it will end, and yes, profit-seeking was surely part of it. But in fact, he had already considered living in that town before.

I think it will be difficult to answer your question in a blanket way because no one can assess the location and condition of the house. Therefore, it’s unclear whether your friend was just lucky with the foreclosure sale, or whether there were valid reasons why no one else bid. The latter is more likely, but the former is also quite possible. Perhaps the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

The more expensive resale will be difficult because one has to assume there was a reason or reasons why interest in the property has been low so far. Speculation tax was already mentioned. In general, the costs associated with buying and selling consume a large part of the profit, if anything is left at all.

Renting out would certainly be an option if the location allows it. I would possibly not lease out the pub but, if possible, convert it into living space instead. Regarding renovations, it depends on how much (urgently) needs to be done, what it would cost, and how well you can rent it out. Acquaintances of mine own several older houses which they gradually renovate and maintain themselves little by little. They always rent them out to people they get through the authorities. So basically no luxury residences for a corresponding clientele, but the rent comes in fairly regularly when it’s done directly via the authorities. That wouldn’t be my thing, but it’s something to consider.

“Long story short” answer: It depends.

Thank you for the answer

"Market value", "appraisal"....are extremely flexible terms. What you actually get, when or after which own measures is written in the stars. ....in court hearings or other auctions there are always people sitting who would otherwise be bored. If they had been interested parties, they would probably have bid at least once. ...Acquaintances with "little knowledge" have judged positively... well then cheers, do they also pay if it's different? ...I thought HE bought it....

Yes, officially he bought it. By a little knowledge I meant that although they are not professionals (in the sense that they were trained in it), they have already renovated/refurbished houses themselves.