(Festus, MO) -- Like many families, the Sleeper family in Festus, Missouri is facing foreclosure, but they have a more unusual situation: They're about to lose their cave.

They're hoping a last minute pitch on eBay can help them either refinance or sell to the highest bidder.
   
Admittedly it's not your typical home.  They Sleepers got strange looks from the start.
"It's a dirty mine tunnel.  What's the plan?" Curt Sleeper recalls his friends reactions.  "And all those same people now look at the home with, you know. And they can't talk for awhile."

Now the family couldn't be more proud.
The house has a gourmet kitchen, luxuery bath, 3 bedrooms and a nursury for the newborn.

The trouble? The Sleepers stand to lose it all.  Their mortgage is about to come due and like many they're unable to refinance.
"I don't fit their model.  A lot of us don't, that's why nobody's getting loans," Sleeper says.  So they're taking matters into their own hands.

The cave itself is 17,000 square feet.  It sits on about three acres and it can all be yours for the right price.  The Sleepers are selling it on eBay.  The minimum bid, $300,000.  Already the site has a lot of interest.  "I have phone calls, e-mails.  Already my web site was shut down 20 times in the first day," says Sleeper.  Still the family hopes it won't come to that.  Even the kids have become attatched to their home.

"eBay, having to sell the cave, that would kind of suck because look at it, it's amazing," says Sleeper's son, Perry.
Behind the living quarters there's more cave, complete with cool acoustics. There's even a stage that was used for rock concerts back in the 70's.

But the family's favorite part?  The cave's natural beauty.
"It's already gorgeous. It just needed a front door and a cover."

The Sleepers haven't given up yet.  They're still trying to find financing.  They're hoping something or someone will come through.
But why they said they'd be sad to sell, the next adventure awaits.
"There's this corn silo out there that's been screaming my name I'm sure," jokes Sleeper

The Sleepers said some investors have already expressed interest in helping them.
But there are no done deals yet. Their eBay auction runs through March 11.  And as of this morning, there are no bids on that auction.



(Ann Rubin for CBS News)