I’m wanting to get into the buy and hold strategy, and am looking out of state where it is more affordable. Curious as to whether or not I should consider buying sight unseen, and if so what recommendations do you have to ensure I’m not getting burned. Obviously, having a team in place would help, but flying out to see properties that may or may not work is an expense and cuts profits. Could it be worth the risk reward to buy unseen? Also would be curious if anyone out there has bought class C sight unseen? If so, how did you do it and what has the result been? Thanks all!

@Thayne P. I would not consider buying properties long distance sight unseen. Exception I already have someone I know and trust to inspect for me.  I have seen people be ripped off, Paying for a fully renovated prperty and now having nothing but a framed out shell. 

Id only ever suggest buying class A in mint condition, and new construction site unseen. Buying class C site unseen is a recipe for disaster. 

@Russell Brazil and @Ned Carey Thank you both for your input, I appreciate hearing the examples and the voice of warning.

I bought a personal house sight unseen, but I knew about the neighborhood and housing prices in that specific area already.  A realtor sent me videos of specific things I wanted to see inside the house.  I happened to have driven by the house in person and remembered the outside and neighborhood when I was in the area earlier.  Saw the inside a month after it closed.

If you do not know the area and prices for the area, and have no one you trust in that area, nope, wait until you can afford a trip to look at numerous properties.

Hi Thayne,

I would not suggest buying a house sight unseen. Def, not a C class. You need someone to give you information that MLS pictures cannot. Why not have a buyers agent go and look at it for you take a video and send you a ton of pics? I do that for my international clients.

If the property is not on market and is off the market.  You can find a licensed agent to go to the house and check it out and you pay them for their services.

You do need to be somewhat familiar with the area or have done a lot of research for this to work. You will also need to have a list of questions you want to be answered by this person. 

As an additional comment, someone in my area keeps buying houses at an auction for more than one would pay for the house completely fixed up off the MSL.  At these auctions one can not even see the inside of the house or do any inspection.  

Dummies who do not know the local rural area prices think they are getting a deal.  They aren't!

Before you buy, you need to look at a dozen houses in the area to get an idea of the prices/neighborhood/areas.  Then go and look at the recently sold houses and their prices before buying.  My area often lists houses way over what they will sell for because we have folks coming from NY area who think everything Is a bargain.  That house I bought sight unseen?  It was listed for $150k, I bought it at $102k.

I’ve bought two Class A properties site unseen from 2,400 miles away. One with a new agent, essentially all over text message, until 3 days before closing when I landed in town. The other, with the same agent (gained my trust) 2.5 years later, but now I have an actual team in place. And landed in town 3 days before closing. No chance on Class C for me.

@Thayne P.

We purchased an OOS property this past summer sight unseen. I would consider it B-.

We had some reputable boots on the ground and without that, not sure if we could have done so. 

On the other hand, many investors in my network purchase in C areas sight unseen. Often.

I have bought DISASTER properties sight unseen and without a contractor to see them either. One time I bought a house with weed coming through the walls, my rehab guy thought I was bananas. I made a ton of money on it though!  

Is it a good idea? Probably not for your first one

the unit numbers are important, but so is the location. You need to know where and what you're buying.

learn the market super well, fly out and look at a few, meet contractors/property managers in person

flying into town cuts into profits, but so does an awful deal just to save on a $500 plane ticket. Once you get a few under your belt you'll feel more confident to buy blind.

@Thayne P. - why are you focused on C class properties? There are many markets where you can find decent B properties for reasonable prices that already have tenants and PM in place.....

@Alexander Felice Thank you! Love the advice and to hear of your success!

@Justin Tahilramani I am not focusing on C. I was just curious to see if anyone was brave enough to do it and what their result was. The bulk of the question was to see if it’s feasible to buy sight unseen. Thanks for the comments and question!

@Thayne P. - it's definitely an option. I've done it several times on A and B properties.

@Thayne P. and @Justin Tahilramani I will have to agree...it can be done. I bought some sight unseen in Alaska, yes you heard it, Arkansas and Ohio while living in Virginia sight unseen.

I've had multiple sellers who are motivated but too embarrassed to allow us access to the home because of the condition. I offer less than land value with the expectation that the house will need to be demolished and hope for the best. We've done a handful of deals like this and only once did we have to tear down the house, all the others we did very well on.  

@Thayne P. A real estate transaction is the same here as it is on the moon...minus the no oxygen part...transactions are process oriented by design. If you are able to leverage technology, do a pre-inspection video walk-thru, and a property inspection, you're golden. The most challenging part is not closing the deal, it's the analysis, due diligence, and post-transaction stabilization. Renovating from afar can be very challenging...95% of our business is working with long-distance investors...I'd be glad to chat about what else you should be looking for in your market. Best of luck going forward.  

I have many real estate investors as clients who buy properties sight unseen, here in Arkansas. Sometimes they connect  with a local person to take pictures, etc. Sometimes, they just do all the research online (and hope for the best?). 

I usually recommend getting someone local to at least put eyes on the property and take a picture or two. I have seen cases where a house shows up on the google earth pictures, only to find out later that the house is no longer there... razed by code enforcement.