SEATTLE–Nineteen percent of people who have purchased a home over the past year placed a bid before ever seeing the property in person.
And, according to the Redfin/SurveyMonkey poll, buyers of high-end homes were almost twice as likely to have made an offer on a home sight unseen. Among people who bought homes for more than $750,000, 39% made an offer without seeing it in person.
Entering bids on properties sight unseen is becoming more prevalent as the housing market stays hot and homes are selling more quickly, but another factor is also playing a role: technology. Brokerage websites and apps like Redfin alert people about homes for sale as soon as they are listed and offer high-resolution and 3D photos and lots of information about the home and neighborhood to help people make informed decisions about a bid, the company noted. Many real estate firms, including Redfin, also have agents who use live or recorded video tours to help people from out of state, as well as locals, get a feel for homes they aren’t able to see in person.