Not allowed to view property until you are under contract??

Question

Hey BP community,

I am looking at a 10 unit property in Cincinnati, Ohio that says "offer by court appointed receiver." I had my agent reach out to set up a showing and they said that you are not allowed to view the property until you are under contract. Not sure if this is common or if this is something that should cause concern?? Any input would be appreciated! Thanks

Sean Cole · Answer

Court Appointed Receiver Sales are a bit different - sometimes there's no inspection contingency, so be sure to read the contract and addendum before signing.

You can also obviously reduce your offer based on the uncertainty of the condition of the units to account for the extra risk.

Jay Orlauski · Answer

Great advice on the common areas - I have also been know to "Shop for an apartment" in a target multiplex in order to see a little more without having to make the offer - but honestly, I had got to the point of just making offers sight unseen until one is accepted. It took over 40 offers to get one accepted during 2006 and was I putting in new offers everyday on listings that didn't even have photographs - depending only on the preliminary numbers for cash flow. But I do like the idea of viewing the commons and a vacant unit or two. Drive the neighborhood real good too. Best of luck to you!

Theo Hicks · Answer

Thanks for all the advice. Going to see if I can look at the 3 vacant units and common areas!

James Bonsall · Answer

I agree with everything here.  You should be able to get a good idea seeing the common areas and a vacant unit or two.  Then, if the rest are really bad you can get out on the inspection period where you absolutely should be looking at every unit.

Russell Brazil · Answer

It is pretty common with tenant occupied properties in mutlis, and commercial properties that you can not see the individual units until you are under contract.

Roy N. · Answer

@Theo Hicks

It's not uncommon with commercial residential properties to not be given full access until an Letter of Intent has been accepted.  As others have mentioned it is normally to keep a large parade of tyre kickers from disturbing the existing tenants.

What we often do is ask to see the common areas and a vacant unit or two (if available) to get a general idea of the state of the property.

Jay Orlauski · Answer

I have seen many situations  - especially where tenants are involved -  that they do not want realtors and potential buyers going through the buildings for several different reasons - some are afraid to spook their tenants in case the property doesn't sell fast and they get stuck with vacancies - they may not want to disturb their tenants - or don't want people going through there unless they know they are serious. One way to find that out is if they make a qualified offer on the subject property. I am in California and I see listings like this ALL the time - " showings are subject to accepted offer"  - it is very normal here. I think generally speaking, the sellers simply don't want to waste time and prefer not to alert their tenants that the property is for sale until the last possible moment when it becomes inevitable.

Lee L. · Answer

@Theo Hicks I've never put an offer on 4+ unit properties, but on 2-4 unit properties that is pretty much normal here in L.A.