Howdy, Does anyone have experience buying properties sight unseen? If so, would you be willing to please offer any tips/advice that would help a newbie avoid potential catastrophe? I am a first-time home buyer who is considering buying a property sight unseen. The reason is because I live in a very expensive market, and am therefore looking to purchase properties outside of my market. I plan to know as much about the property as possible before putting it under contract, including: • Having a local agent walk through the property and send me a detailed video & photos • Have a general contractor walk through the property and provide a repair estimate (along with photos of all items that will need to be fixed so I have a visual reference) Are there any other tips you would recommend? I will definitely visit the property in-person before closing, but wanted to get your advice on best-practices when it comes to getting a property under contract before physically visiting it. Thank you in advance!

first time out you should go look. pictures and videos can be deceiveing.

Hi Fredrick, I buy properties sight unseen and I can tell you it is very hard. You need someone who you can trust that will give you honest non-bias advice. For me, I have a family member. They take a look with our agent and give me all the information I need. I also underwrite the property prior to seeing it. I know what the ARV will be, what my rehab cost will be based on the photos (pending more after physical inspection), and what my monthly rent will be. It would be a waste of time flying there and not having a deal in the contract but its also so important to see it. You can write a contingent offer and see if after your offer is accepted. The problem I see is if the property has multiple offers the seller is not going to take yours. I think at a minimum you need to fly out to the area and do your homework prior to making offers. This way you know exactly what you are getting into area wise. I can tell you the neighborhoods are different than say CA. Someone local can say the area is good but when you get there it may not be good to you. It certainly can be done but you need to do a lot of homework.

Unless you have someone you can trust, I'd go out and look for yourself. Find an area that works for you, then take a trip down there making sure you're working with a realtor who does rental properties. You should be able to look at a number of properties in a short period of time.

Go to Vegas and roll the dice , you may win , you may lose . No different buying sight unseen . You live in an expensive market , thats where I would buy . Its the thrill of the hunt . There are deals to be had in ANY market . You just have to find them or make them find you

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Updated almost 6 years ago on 02/19/2019. Most recent reply

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Fredrick HockPoster

Starting Out

Sight Unseen - How to Avoid Deadly Disaster??

Fredrick HockPoster

Posted February 19, 2019 16:36

Howdy,

Does anyone have experience buying properties sight unseen? If so, would you be willing to please offer any tips/advice that would help a newbie avoid potential catastrophe?

I am a first-time home buyer who is considering buying a property sight unseen. The reason is because I live in a very expensive market, and am therefore looking to purchase properties outside of my market.

I plan to know as much about the property as possible before putting it under contract, including:

Having a local agent walk through the property and send me a detailed video & photos
Have a general contractor walk through the property and provide a repair estimate (along with photos of all items that will need to be fixed so I have a visual reference)

Are there any other tips you would recommend?

I will definitely visit the property in-person before closing, but wanted to get your advice on best-practices when it comes to getting a property under contract before physically visiting it.

Thank you in advance!

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