help on cleveland investment in dealing with purchase agreement

[James Lin]

I offer on a property in cleveland zipcode 44120 on 118th st,  with a real estate agent from realtor.com 

The seller agent accept the offer, but on the purchase agreement, there is no seller information, only the listing agent phone and email.  My agent send an inspector, which i paid $350.   but they said the tenant doesn't want people to be inside the house due to covid and doesn't allow picture and video.  So they did a very fast and simple inspection without picture and video.    I am from Los angeles area,  I have never seen the house and have never visit cleveland.    I need advise.  thanks..

[Jonathan Moore]

@James Lin

This would raise a few red flags for me. I understand the COVID concern, but there’s ways to mitigate it. For example, the tenant could leave during the inspection. In the end, my level of risk comfort would never allow anything less than a standard inspection with a thorough report, pictures included. The pictures go a long way in identifying issues with the property.

I’ve never visited any of my properties in person since I’m in CA. That makes the independent inspection critical to me. For me, a purchase agreement must have an inspection contingency. And if the seller is unable to provide full access to the inspector, then they’re not allowing me to sign off on that contingency. Some investors may feel differently based on their experience or risk tolerance.