First ST/vacation rental

[Lindsay G.]

Hello. I'm looking to buy my first STR. I am looking out if state. How realistic is it to buy/furnish/rent a place without seeing it in person? (ie have realtor FaceTime me/send video's of property, use a furnishing company, hire full time property management). Thank you!

[Rohin Dhar]

We've put offers in on places without seeing them (and then toured the places in person prior to closing once we were in contract). Some helpful hints for "de-risking" this:

1. If it's an existing Airbnb/Vrbo, read all the reviews. That's like having dozens or hundreds of people inspect the property and location for you.

2. Read all the reviews of Airbnb and Vrbo listings nearby your target property. That will give you some due diligence on the location and the kind of homes people like.

3. Do a location based search on instagram of the area to get a sense of the general vibe. Is it filled with joyous pictures of people on vacation or more mundane? What do people like doing on vacation in these areas and can your house help facilitate that? You probably can do this on Snapchat and other social networks as well.

4. And goes without saying, but do all the inspections and such.

While we've technically viewed all our properties before closing, I'm not sure I've added much value by seeing it compared to reading all the Airbnb reviews if it's an existing rental and having qualified inspectors review the property.