More Than One-Third of Buyers Bid on a Home Sight-Unseen

The share of homebuyers purchasing homes sight-unseen is rising. This buying approach increased from just under 20 percent in June 2016 to 35 percent in November 2017, signaling a growing trend on the housing market.

Millennials and homebuyers in California markets are most likely to put in an offer on a home they have not seen in person, according to survey data. In the last of three reports using this data, Redfin found that 57 percent of respondents who bought a home in Los Angeles in 2017 made an offer sight-unseen, as did 44 percent in San Francisco. Generationally, millennials accounted for 45 percent of sight-unseen buyers in November 2017, as opposed to baby boomers, who had a share of just 6 percent.

People who can’t get in to tour a home right away because they’re busy or relocating from out of town often rely on [digital] tools to explore the home itself, and the vast array of statistics, reviews, maps and articles online that can help a prospective buyer understand what it’s like to live in a neighborhood. However ... the agent can be a buyer’s greatest resource. From the fast pace of the market, to the time constraints of buyers relocating from out of town, Redfin agents cite numerous factors that influence buyers to bid on a home before seeing it in person.

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