Thought I’d make a new topic on this one, because the question comes up reasonably often. I know a number of other people on here have bought sight unseen too. Anyone want to add their thoughts on their own experiences of buying sight unseen? Or maybe people think it should neve3r be done- dunno. Anyway, here’s some ideas from another thread.
____________I’ve bought 2 properties sight unseen, even though it can be seen as a bit of a property no-no by some. With one of the properties, I was completely familiar with the area, and knew the stratch of that particular road, so when a place came up there, I just bought it. Of course, I did the *property* due diligence to purchase, as opposed to the *location* due diligence if I didn’t know the place.
For the other property, I began with no knowledge of the area. I had seen other similar properties for sale there, and really started doing some research on the area. Initially looking up “blahtown crime” “blahtown” population” and then broadening my search until I had read everything on the net about the place- I probably read 300 links from google.com.au, and read every edition of the local online newspaper, so I could get a “feel” for the place. I then had the confidence to feel like I would buy there. I rang up owners of the IP’s that had been for sale online (the old ads were not yet taken off the net but had been sold) and tracked down who I would have to find to be able to purchase one of the properties. I asked to be informed if one of the properties came up, and voila, in 2 months, one did. I got sent a large number of photos, did my *property* due diligence, and bought it.
From these checks, I now know about the history of the place, have checked maps of the region, and pretty much like I feel it inside out.
There are so many ways to approach a new location- you can find out all about the “concrete” aspects, such as physical features, and other demographic stuff, but it is also good to be able to get a “cultural feel” of the place, which often, the local rag can give you. They can include the types of activities that go on in the town… for example, what do people do for recreation? eg horseriding, on the one hand, or recreational shooting, on the other. It all depends on what you’re looking for. I also check out the politics of the local member, to see what kind of town it might be. Everyone’s looking for different things, but to me, I’d rather know as many aspects of the place as I can- there can never be too much information, in my mind- only too little.
kay henry
Hi All,
I have just bought my first IP sight unseen. I live in NSW and the property is in Qld. I employed the services of a buyers agent to perform the inspections, send digital photos, liase with the sellers agents and contract out all the building/pest/electrical reports etc. They recommended this property to me and I bought based on numbers and of course did my due diligence. I guess its my trust in the buyers agents that is the key. I also think that as a FT employee I do not have the luxury of taking a week or even a weekend off to go visit interstate areas etc (where the cf +ve props are). Being a novice investor it is also helpful to have them giving advice and guiding me along my first steps of my investment journey. Personally I like the idea of outsourcing the legwork of buying an IP. I believe it is cost effective and it frees up my time to enjoy life a bit. [biggrin].
Regards,
J.
Yes I would buy ‘sight unseen’ if a good opportunity came up.
About 6 months ago we almost bought a property (house/land) unseen, but the pest inspection report I had ordered told me termites had recently entered the house and that there were lots around in the garden and fences as well.
I didn’t want to go ahead and pulled out before signing the contract.Celivia
Short Answer – No. I am an investor not a gambler.
Whats $1500 when your spending $100k or more. Better off investing $1500 in viewing area and property than loosing say $10k. Also dont forget the time in the market you may also loose if you make the wrong purchase.
Hi Kay,
As one of the new kids to property investing, I’m taking the cautious approach and looking at places before making a decision. It is very time consuming but I simply don’t have the confidence to buy a house unseen. If I buy a property that turns out to be a winner, I’m more likely to try it again. If I buy a property that is a lemon at this early stage I will only have meself to blame. With more confidence and some capital to absorb the odd error in judgement I may buy sight unseen in the future if the reward is worthy of the risk.
Cheers
JaknDi
JaknDi :o)
I only bought sight unseen over the last 12 months, J’n’D, and that’s only because I’ve developed the confidence to do so- before that, I would have been much more conservative in my approach. There’s a number of ways, i reckon, to approach property:
* Do the hard yards yourself and visit every place you may buy a property in (ok for the time rich).
* Do as PozzCF did and use a Buyers’ Agent to undertake the steps for you
* Use a spotter to do the research for you
* Develop the skills and become your own BA or spotter, and therefore you can buy sight unseen.I did what was probably the most common thing initially when I bought a couple of places- bought 5-10 minutes drive from where I lived, so I could feel secure about the places I bought. Thing is though, those early properties were not really in anywhere near as good nick as the props I have bought sight unseen. So whilst I could do a drive-by every day, it didn’t mean the properties were not a “risk” per se. I could just stare at the “risk” daily, hehe.
It’s good to have a conversation about this stuff. I think the net provides possibilities that were not available 15 years ago. Anything that is written about any location can be found on the net, and that gives me a real sense of confidence in doing my research. I also do rtesearch for a living, so it’s something I’m comfortable with.
Of course, a property lemon is a lemon whether you see it with your own eyes or not. I only bought properties when I was 100% sure about them. I’ve pulled out of a sight-unseen property too, because I was worried about it- but that was more due to the property, than to any fears about what i didn’t know about it- I felt like what i
*did* know, was the problem.kay henry
I personally wouldn’t do it.. has anybody else noticed how pictures of properties online are usually very deceiving? i.e. room sizes? [blush2]
NEWGEN,
No kidding. I’ve been to open houses in sydney, and wondered where the property was- those virtual tours make a property gain 30 pounds! First thing I always ask though, about any property I inquire on, is the size. Most contract back pages, have the plans of the property, or one’s solicitor, can find out the size. But I must admit, i’m a size queen
kay henry
We have bought one property sight unseen, as it turns out we have done well but we did spend a week at the property sprucing her up. The nerves that go along with buying sight unseen are not worth it to me.
I have to say I am with Yack on this one! What is the time and cost of checking it out compared to seeing them yourself. Maybe I am just still an ametuer! (spell checker)
Cheers
Leigh K[biggrin]PS: Kay, I would have thought ‘size’ was of no importance you![blush2]
Hi all, I always thought “I COULD buy SIGHT UNSEEN”, just make sure I get the professionals in to do all the checks.
However after travelling many hours recently to view a property, I was absolutely stunned that it did not at all resembled what I saw on the internet. It was a total disaster. I eventually found a suitable property, and paid much less.
About 2 weeks later the RE agent told me that someone from Sydney purchased this property “sight unseen”. Some of the locals also advised me not to touch it.
After this experience I could not buy sight unseen.
We have interstate properties, but I never game enough to buy sight unseen. Last December we flew down to Tasmania for the morning, inspected a couple of properties and bought one. I guess I will do as much homework as I possibly can, sign the contract, but my final decision will be base on physically inspect the property. Therefor it is very important to have an escape clause in the contract.
I bought 2 IPs site-un-seen a few months ago. I did a full due diligence of the area before purchased. But the reason of buying site-un-seen is due time to get there and the figures matched my criteria.
Kind regards
Jet Dollars
[Retire Young, Retire Riches] [strum] Wanna discuss the Sharemarket: http://www.aussiestockforums.comHi,
couldn’t buy sight unseen — too conservative. Going the buyers agent route is OK although I haven’t done so. I just feel if you spend a great deal of time looking into an area, and then additional time searching for the right property — then a site inspection seems a logical conclusion to the process. Web advertising can be misleading; agents on the ground want a sale for their vendors. Nobody cares if you buy a lemon.Anyway, given the differing views expressed it seems that a number of members on the forum have had a great deal of success with acquisitions, sight unseen. Each to their own.
Regards,
Helen
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