Would you buy a house without touring it?

[Matthew Reichert]

I'm talking with an agent who's selling the portfolio of a client who's getting into apartment complexes. The houses he's selling, I asked about viewing them, and he said we couldn't do showings because they're all tenanted. Would you buy a house that you couldn't be shown?

[Dan Maciejewski]

It definitely depends on the deal -- short answer is no.

I'm not just buying the house, I'm buying the lease, and there's no way I'm buying the lease of a tenant that won't let the owner show the house.  If it's a case of the tenant not knowing it's for sale, there's ways around it.

It may be a case of the owner wanting a qualified buyer and offer/contract before showing -- that happens.  In that case, make the offer that makes sense, then view, then re-negotiate based on what you find in the viewing/inspection.

How good a deal it is makes all the difference.