Buying a house sight unseen: 8 key steps

Purchasing a house is a major transaction, so it’s important to do your due diligence before committing. This homework includes inspecting the house yourself, taking first-hand stock of the neighborhood, and getting a sense for how the house feels. That usually requires being there in person. But in certain circumstances, you may have to do some of this work remotely.

Buying a house sight unseen can be tricky, but it’s becoming more popular.

Learn more about the pros and cons of buying a house without seeing it, adding sight-unseen contingencies in your offer, red flags to watch out for, and recommended steps involved with purchasing remotely.

Key takeaways:

• Purchasing sight unseen is a viable strategy that can be accomplished via virtual tours, remote research online, and local representatives.
• There are risks and blind spots, including hidden structural defects, neighborhood noise and congestion, and missing visual details that, if overlooked, can lead to buyer’s remorse.
• To safeguard this transaction, hire a professional home inspector, carefully review seller disclosures, and include an inspection contingency and sight-unseen addendum in your contract.

What does it mean to buy a house sight unseen?

Even if you can’t tour and explore a home on-site, there are ways to learn and view what a residence is like, such as virtual video tours, interactive 3D tours, and online photos that accompany the listing. These tools can give you a good sense of the home’s look, feel, and flow if you can’t be physically present.

So buying a house sight unseen doesn’t literally mean that you’ve never laid eyes on the property and don’t know what it looks like. It means purchasing a home you’ve never physically visited or seen in person.

Should you buy a house sight unseen?

Seeing your potential home in person is one of the best ways to decide whether it’s the right property for you. But there isn’t anything wrong with or illegal about purchasing remotely.

There are a few situations where buying a residence sight unseen makes sense. For example, if you’re moving cross-country, it may be difficult to visit the site. You may also want to swoop in and claim a newly listed hot property from afar, before a bidding war ensues or someone beats you to the opportunity.

“This makes sense for a job, long-distance, or military move when you know when you want to move, and traveling is impractical, or in investment moves where the numbers are the more important part,” says James Rothfuss, a Florida-based real estate broker. “But sight-unseen buying may not be a good option for you if you’re overwhelmed with the prospect of an unexpected repair bill or a home that doesn’t turn out to be what you are looking for when you saw it. When contingencies are robust, your local team is reliable, and there’s a financial buffer, then it’s manageable.”

Pros and cons of buying a house sight unseen

There are benefits and drawbacks to remote buying. Let’s take a closer look at both.

Pros

• Save on travel costs and prevent work absences: If you’re buying a home far from where you live, you may not have the time, funds, or work flexibility to travel every time you want to physically tour a residence.
• Tour more homes, more quickly: In-person tours can take a long time. Just scheduling the visit and getting to the home can be an annoying process. With virtual tours, you can view dozens of homes in a fraction of the time without leaving the comforts of your home.
• Expedite the time between listing and offer: Sometimes, homes get listed, but tours aren’t possible for a day or so after the home hits the market. With a virtual tour and the help of your agent, you may be able to make an offer more quickly than the competition.

Cons

• You could overlook problems with the home: When buying from afar, you’re completely reliant on your agent and home inspector to notice issues. You might get saddled with a property that requires expensive repairs, leading to buyer’s remorse.
• You can’t get a sense of nearby traffic: Traveling to the home, driving in the area, and attempting to park can give you a better idea of what traffic in the area is like. Without this research, you could purchase a property gridlocked by traffic and congestion.
• You won’t get a feel for the neighborhood: The surrounding area and neighborhood vibe are important qualities to evaluate carefully. You could end up owning a home in a less-than desirable community that doesn’t match your interests.

How to research a home and neighborhood remotely

If you’re determined to proceed from a distance, it’s important to do your homework and realize the limitations involved. Here’s what the experts recommend.

Make a checklist of questions the listing does not answer

“This checklist is really a list of everything the listing is designed not to tell you,” Anthony Guerriero, managing partner with Manhattan Miami Real Estate, says. “Which direction do the windows face, and what time does light actually arrive? What do you hear with the windows open? What is directly across the street? Can the lot be built on? What’s above you and below you? Has the ceiling ever leaked? What is the monthly carrying cost once you add taxes and any assessment, not just the number in the ad?”

Rothfuss also recommends asking questions about water pressure, cellular reception, street noise, and anything the photos don’t show.

Schedule a live video tour

Slate a date and time for your agent to conduct a tour of the property that you can watch live online.

“You can ask your agent to walk through the house, and direct them to ‘open that cabinet, ‘run the shower,’ ‘show me the camera out every window,’ and ‘show me the walk around the outside and the roofline,’” suggests Rothfuss. “A live tour reveals the areas of the photos that aren’t staged.”

Understand what technology can miss

Smartphone cameras and teleconferencing platforms aren’t foolproof. Technology can’t give you a sense of the smell, noise, or lighting, for example.

Also, “a wide lens makes a room look 30% bigger and flattens a bad view into a fine one. Video won’t tell you the trash room is next to your door, or that the building runs on one slow elevator, or that the place smells damp when it rains,” cautions Guerriero.

Research the neighborhood

Learn more about the surrounding community on your own by checking out satellite and street views on Google Maps. Research area commute times, and review flood maps, school data, crime statistics, and nearby highways, rail, and flight paths. Ask your agent to provide details about community infrastructure, nearby retailers, and community services and parks.

Ask someone local to check it out

In addition to your agent, ask a friend, relative, or someone you trust in the area to tour the property and surrounding neighborhood on your behalf.

“Choose someone whose only job is to be your eyes and who has no reason to sell you the place,” Guerriero adds.

Steps to buying a house sight unseen

Still eager to purchase a home sight unseen? Follow these recommended best practices.

Step 1: Choose a good real estate agent

Enlisting a good agent is important whenever you’re shopping for a home, but it becomes absolutely essential if you’re buying remotely. In addition to guiding your search and aiding with negotiations, your agent will be your eyes and ears on the ground, providing information about properties you’ll never get to see in person.

Ask key questions: Does the agent have experience working with remote buyers? What is their experience with sight-unseen sales? What tools can they offer to help you purchase remotely? And do they have any tips that can assist in this process?

Step 2: Get preapproved for your mortgage

This involves submitting an application and key financial documents to the lender of your choice. Your lender will review your application and vet the information you provide.

Once preapproved, the lender will provide a letter stating how much you can borrow, giving you a sense of how much home you can afford. That letter is what makes preapproval different from prequalification, which does not involve as much financial investigation.

Preapproval makes your offers more appealing to sellers because it indicates that you have a much better chance of qualifying for a loan.

Step 3: Take a virtual tour of the property

Once your agent locates a property that might interest you, prepare to tour the home virtually. There are a few ways to do this. Your agent can FaceTime or Zoom call you as they physically walk through the home, or upload their video walkthrough to YouTube or via text message. Common virtual tour options include:

• Full walk-throughs: These tours are videos showing each room of the home, often with an agent narrating their walkthrough and each room’s features.
• 3D room tours: These let you interact with a virtual model of the home, rotating and viewing each room and the home as a whole so you can get a closer look at specific aspects of the property. Keep in mind these are virtual models, so they won't perfectly reflect the home.
• Interactive 360-degree virtual tour: Like a 3D room tour, these let you interact with the model and move, zoom, or rotate the view to get a good sense of each area. However, they use real photos to provide a more realistic look at each room.

Step 4: Review the Seller’s Disclosure

A Seller’s Disclosure safeguards both the buyer and seller by requiring the latter to reveal known property defects before closing. This ensures that you fully understand what you are buying. By signing this document, you acknowledge the property’s condition up-front, which can prevent sudden transaction delays and protect the seller against future lawsuits around any disclosed issues.

Step 5: Make a sight unseen offer

Once you find a property you like, make a purchase offer. You’ll want to rely on your agent to walk you through the process, which typically includes the following steps:

1. Let your agent know you want to make an offer.
2. Have your agent look at nearby comps and help you determine a good price.
3. Decide on any contingencies to include, such as an inspection contingency.
4. Draft your offer letter.
5. Submit the letter with earnest money.
6. Be ready to negotiate with the seller. You may need to send updated offers throughout the negotiation process.

Step 6: Protect your offer with contingencies

A contingency is a clause you can put in your real estate contract that allows you to legally back away from the deal and recoup your earnest money deposit if particular conditions aren’t met. A smart contingency to add when purchasing remotely is that the home must pass a professional inspection. If it does not pass, the sale won’t move forward.

Step 7: Get a thorough home inspection

Paying for a professional home inspection is a smart idea whenever you’re buying a home, especially for a remote purchase. Without being able to examine the house in person, you can rely on the inspector to rule out potential issues like:

• Cracks or defects in the foundation
• Roof leaks
• Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system problems
• Plumbing clogs
• Water pressure issues
• Peeling paint
• Inoperable sink and shower fixtures
• Problems with exhaust fans
• Drainage red flags
• Uneven doors or windows

Your inspector can note any problems they spot and help you estimate the costs to fix them. Depending on the severity of the issues, you may choose not to move forward with the purchase.

Step 8: Plan for the final walk-through and closing

A day or two before closing, your agent can conduct a final walk-through to ensure that the home’s condition hasn’t changed since the inspection and the seller has fulfilled their obligations in the contract and moved out. Then comes closing – the final step in the process. This is when you have to pay closing costs, such as loan origination fees. During closing, the buyer typically sits down with a lawyer and reviews the paperwork that finalizes the sale and mortgage. But depending on where you’re buying, you may be able to close remotely from a different location.

How to reduce risk when buying a house sight unseen

To safeguard your interests as a remote buyer, consider these tips:

Include a sight-unseen addendum

Coupled with an inspection contingency, a sight-unseen addendum provides you a set time to view a home after the contract is accepted and allows you to walk away if you aren’t satisfied. This addendum confirms that you haven’t yet viewed the property in person, thereby protecting the seller and the agents involved if you ultimately agree to the home’s condition.

Don’t skip inspections

Hiring a professional, experienced home inspector is strongly recommended for any buyer, but especially for remote purchasers who need surrogates on-site to be their eyes and ears. Foregoing an inspection puts you at risk of owning a house with hidden defects.

Watch for red flags

Think twice before proceeding to remotely claim a home if you encounter any of the following:

• Cropped or missing photos in the listing.
• Suspicious virtual-only tours that are pre-edited, which can conceal issues like ceiling cracks or structural problems.
• Pressure from the seller to waive your home inspection or appraisal.
• The seller marking “unknown” on disclosure forms when you or your agent suspect a defect.
• Fishy payment instructions that can lead to wire fraud; always verify bank details with your title company over the phone.

FAQ

Still in doubt about sight-unseen purchasing? Let’s clear up some other grey areas.

What is the 3-3-3 rule for buying a house?

The 3-3-3 rule dictates that you should set aside three months of general emergency savings, separately salt away an extra three months of mortgage payments, and evaluate at least three different properties before making an offer. This rule safeguards you from making a premature buying decision or stretching your finances too thin.

What are Dave Ramsey’s 3 rules for buying a house?

Personal finance expert Dave Ramsey espouses three rules for buying a house: (1) Be debt-free. (2) Salt away sufficient money in an emergency fund to cover 3 – 6 months of household expenses. (3) Don’t commit to a mortgage for a rate longer than 15 years. Ramsey has also recommended never having a mortgage payment that is more than 25% of your take-home pay.

Can you back out of buying a house sight unseen?

Yes, you are allowed to walk away from a sight-unseen house purchase so long as your purchase agreement includes an inspection or due diligence contingency. Within this contingency window, if your live or physical inspection uncovers problems with the property, you can legally walk away from the transaction and get your earnest money deposit refunded in full. But if you waive these contingencies or attempt to cancel after the deadline, you risk losing your earnest money and could be sued for breach of contract.

The bottom line: To buy a house sight-unseen, you’ll need a top-notch real estate agent

Buying a home sight-unseen comes with some major pitfalls. But this approach can work if you have strong support from a skilled real estate agent, rigorous inspections, remote research, and clear offer protections. A top-notch real estate agent is essential for evaluating the home, flagging risks, coordinating inspections, and helping you move through the remote purchase process with more confidence.

If you need to find an experienced real estate agent you can trust, our friends at Redfin can help. And if you’re seeking home loan financing, talk with a Rocket Mortgage Home Loan Expert.

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