Buying blind is not impossible

When I first went to college, I registered, paid, bought a plane ticket to Minneapolis and arrived on campus having never set foot there (or in Minnesota for that matter). It was a little silly for sure, but I knew I wanted to attend there and nothing was going to change my mind. In the case of my college choice, it fulfilled all of my "must haves" and most of my "nice to haves." Were I buying a house, my confidence would have been on the same level.

In our current (mildly insane-but slowly getting better) global climate, buying a home site unseen is becoming more common. While working over in Lincoln, we had a handful of people purchase condos never having stepped foot in them. For a ski condo, I think that is a little less risky. You are basically buying a place to recreate a few times (weekends) a year. I read once that the average pass holder only visits the mountain 12 times a season. Buying a ski condo or even a vacation home site unseen is a bit more understandable in my mind. But let's dig into purchasing your year-round home without stepping foot inside. There's a little more at stake.

One of the first things to evaluate about the home is the neighborhood and greater surrounding area of the home. This is obviously very challenging to do remotely, but it is possible. A friend of mine was looking into a home purchase a few states away and spent a couple hours using Google maps to virtually "walk" around the neighborhood where his prospective home was located. I thought it was brilliant. Of course you can't really hear and smell all of the minute details but he did learn there were some commercial "strip malls" close by and even a transfer station (read: dump) that was not obvious at first. Not that the agent was being dishonest, but that information was most certainly not going to make it into the home brochure!

Shopping centers, commercial areas, schools, parks and playgrounds are the things most of us would find after taking a driving tour of the area when we find a home we like. You'll need to be creative to accomplish this from afar but it is not impossible. Many cities even have welcome videos and slideshows. Of course those are all the highlights, but it's still more data for your brain to make this big decision. We are incredibly fortunate to have the Internet at our disposal. Be sure you make the most of it since this is the perfect use case (besides all the cat videos!).

The next best option here is to enlist the services of professionals. This is a piece of advice I give to "in-person" homebuyers as well. We all get a home inspection when we buy a home. Some have even paid for an inspection before making an offer. If you're interested in a home away from your home, why not hire someone to be your eyes and ears for the evaluation process. Whether you have enlisted the services of a buyer's agent (likely a good idea in this situation), a home inspector or even your mortgage broker, all of those people now have your best interests in mind. I'm quite sure every one of them would help you better evaluate the home and neighborhood since they each have a vested interest in this purchase. And honestly, if they aren't willing to help, it's time to find a better partner to work with.

One area that is particularly challenging to evaluate is space. A home (or room) with high ceilings just "feels" different than standard eight foot ceilings. A walk-in closet is, well let's be honest — magical, but is it functional and spacious enough to hold all your stuff. Even the basement can add a different dimension to the feel of the home and it really is difficult to get a sense for that without walking the space. "A virtual walk-through is very helpful in evaluating a home, but doing that 'real time' with a friend or trusted professional is truly the best way to see a home," notes Badger Realty agent, Linda Walker. "The ability to discuss a space, walk back through an area or a room multiple times and discuss every nook and cranny with a live human holding the camera really is the optimal way to do this," she continued.

One thing technology has still not mastered is transferring smells electronically. You can't experience pet odors, smoking remnants or a damp basement over a video chat. This is where that trust comes into play with the person on the other end of the line. If you have confidence in your relationship, you'll have confidence in their evaluation and interpretation of all the information they are receiving with all five senses. That piece of the puzzle really is my number one priority for you to take away today.

Buying a home site unseen is nerve-racking for sure. But it really can be done with a tolerable level of confidence. You need to do all the homework you can possibly do from your location and then lean heavily on the help from those who are on-site. Just like buying a home "seen," you shouldn't get too overzealous without sticking to your "must have" list. And be sure to find at least one person you can work with to gather all the possible data you can from afar. I think you will find that the process is more palatable than you originally thought. Happy browsing.