Let's work through the problem step by step.

Let $P$ represent the original price the owner paid for the property 12 years ago.

1. The owner initially listed the property at 140% more than the original price, meaning the list price was: $P + 1.4P = 2.4P$

2. After receiving no offers, the owner dropped the list price by 10%, so the new price is 90% of the initial list price: $0.9 \times 2.4P = 172,800$

3. Simplifying the equation: $2.16P = 172,800$

4. Solve for $P$: $P = \frac{172,800}{2.16} = 80,000$

Thus, the original price the owner paid for the property was $80,000.

Would you like more details or have any questions?

Here are five related questions:

1. What would the price have been if the owner dropped it by 20% instead of 10%?
2. How much profit would the owner make if the property sold at the reduced price of $172,800?
3. If property values increase by 5% annually, what would be the expected value of this property today based on its original price?
4. How much would the owner have listed the property for if they aimed for a 200% increase instead of 140%?
5. What would the list price have been if the property appreciated at a steady rate over the 12 years?

Tip: When solving percentage-based price problems, it's often easier to express everything as a decimal (e.g., 140% as 1.4) to simplify calculations.