You know the scenario. You’ve seen the perfect house online. The more you look at it, the more you can imagine having dinner with that view out the window, inviting friends over for a ski weekend (or who are we kidding? A ski week!), maybe hiking to a mountaintop in the summer, or fishing anytime you want in the lakes and streams.

The house is perfect. Problem is, you can’t get to it. You’re in Chicago. Or Dallas. Or even Denver during heavy snow. Is buying a house sight unseen in Summit County something you can do?

The answer is yes, if you use a real estate agent who’s also real about your concerns. They need to get to know you, your goals, your comfort zones, and best of all—what kind of house you want.

Paffrath & Thomas Real Estate has been in business in Breckenridge since 1979. You don’t make it as the longest local and family-owned real estate company in town, unless your team has built one thing first: trust. It’s truly satisfying for us when someone enters a place they haven’t been before and we get a text saying “we love it!”  That’s a wonderful feeling. 

Read on for some tips to make buying a house sight unseen easier, smarter, and better.

2020: The Year of Buying Remotely 

COVID is awful, and when it practically shut down the country in 2020, businesses had to get very creative about how they continued. Or, they just didn’t.

The fact is, in 2020, 63% of homebuyers made their purchase sight unseen. That’s thousands of real estate transactions done through remote processes. 

By the middle of 2022, the average was still almost 50%—even after travel restrictions were completely lifted. Buyers and sellers had grown accustomed to finding, bidding for, and purchasing homes remotely.

Moving Quickly

One of the other reasons for such an increase in people buying a house sight unseen, is the speed at which houses have sold—especially during a sellers’ market. We’ve seen houses sell in a single day. Many get offers within a few days. 

Do some soul searching about your timeline. Do you need the property now? That means if you’re considering property from a distance, buying a house sight unseen may be your best option. 

Or, do you have the patience to pass up listings until you come out and tour in-person? That might work better for you if you absolutely must be there to get a feel of the place.

Challenges to Buying a House Sight Unseen

Buying your dream house remotely might sound both wonderful and scary at the same time. Our team at Paffrath & Thomas understands it completely. Though buying remotely gives you amazing freedom to find the right property, it does present challenges.

Getting “the Vibe”

When you visit a home, you can get a feel for what you’re interested in. When you buy remotely, you don’t have that initial walk through. 

Paffrath & Thomas can help you there. We already have professional pictures taken of all our listings. We also have videos of properties. And we can take more! We’ve recorded custom hi-def video walk-throughs for clients so that they could clearly see any parts of the house where they wanted a better view.

Can You Do a Virtual One-on-One Walk Through? 

We also offer live one-on-one virtual walkthroughs. You might think we’d do that for all our properties. We would—if service allowed. That’s a fact of life in our mountain towns. Sometimes you have great service, and sometimes…well…you won’t be streaming Netflix anytime soon on your phone. 

At Paffrath & Thomas, we do everything we can to connect you with the right property. So if a face-chat walkthrough is available, we’ll do it for you so you can get that “vibe!”

Does the Realtor® Understand the Property?

When you’re buying a house sight unseen in Summit County, you’ll want to find out just how well your real estate agent understands the property, the community, and what it takes to live up here. 

• How long have they been in the area? 
• Do they know the history of the property? 
• What are their connections to service providers who can help prepare the property for your arrival? 

A lot of our brokers have been involved in Summit County real estate for years, and even decades. Many of us were there when the original sales on the land occurred, and the buildings themselves were built. 

Frequently, we’re able to not not only provide professional photos, hi-def video walkthroughs, and important market data about the property—it’s highly possible we can show you the original floor plans.

Plus our having intimate knowledge of the area across years allows us strong insight into the construction quality of properties.

Service Providers

We have an extensive list of the most dependable craftspeople and companies available. You don’t spend over 40 years in real estate in Summit County without finding the best of the best! 

Replace cabinets before you arrive? We can help. New carpet? We can help. Need wood for that fireplace? We can help. At Paffrath & Thomas, we don’t just sell great homes, we welcome great neighbors. 

The Biggest Worry for Buying a House Sight Unseen: The Inspection

The home inspection is one of the most critical steps in purchasing a home. It has to be thorough, and it has to be done because you need the confidence in the home, and so does your lender.

However, if you can’t be there for the inspection, that can make you feel worried. Who’s there to truly represent you?

That’s where your Paffrath & Thomas team comes in. We will go to the inspection for you. We’ll be the boots on the ground, telling you the good side and the issues honestly. 

What sets us apart is that your best interest is our number one priority. We have clients that last for years. It’s not because we sold them a house. It’s because we helped them buy the right house. 

Your Homework to Make Your New Home Work

When buying a house sight unseen in Summit County, you’ll need to explore some of your own motivations, and pose important questions to your real estate agent.

Understand Your Purchase Goals

The purpose for your purchase directly connects to your expected lifestyle in your mountain home. We highly suggest you make a list of your goals. Drill down into the why’s of your purchase in Summit County.

• Are you ski focused? 
• Do you prefer views and privacy?
• Is social convenience and consumer accessibility important?
• What are your connectivity requirements (phone, internet)?
• Are you seasonal? 
• Do you want to participate in short-term rental of your home?

The answers to these questions—and more—affect which neighborhoods and options you’ll have available. The more you can delineate your preferences, the better your real estate agent should be able to match your preferences to the just-right home.

Build a List of Questions

We encourage you to ask us lots of questions. Some of the upfront, find-out-asap questions you should get answers to include:

• Does the property have an HOA—and what are its rules?
• Can the property be used for short term rental?
• What is the accessibility for the location in summer/winter?
• How far to the nearest grocery store/gas station/ski lift/super cool bar?
• How does seasonal tourism affect this location?
• Yearly utility costs for this address?

These are just a few examples. Think about how you want or need to live, and ask the questions that address your concerns, along with the questions that address the physical aspects of the location.

The more we talk, the better we can understand what you’re looking for—and the better you may understand it too.

What Works for Buying Works for Selling, Too

When you’re selling remotely, that presents its own set of challenges. Your real estate agent should offer assistance to help you approach the sale from the best position. 

At Paffrath & Thomas, our listings in Summit County all receive the P&T touch. We help our clients as much as they need, delivering 40-plus years of expertise into every real estate relationship.

Some of the biggest challenges out-of-town sellers experience include:

Staging

Paffrath & Thomas can help by bringing in designers to help stage your property. We’ll create a journey for your potential buyers, helping your home unfold before them. Within a few steps, the buyer should experience two sensations:

1. The Wow. They feel impressed/inspired by the home.
2. Ownership. They start seeing themselves living in the space.

We’ve also moved furniture around ourselves to help your home create the most inviting feeling possible for future owners. Storage

We have hired trustable, bonded providers to help box up belongings and ship to you. And we’ve frequently done it ourselves! Just because you can’t be here doesn’t mean you have to wait for your personal items to be returned.

Cleaning

We can help you hire recommended cleaners for that spic & span attention to detail.

Maintenance

Does your home need a little love to achieve the best sales value? We’ll help you by pointing out areas we think your home might need improvement. If you agree, we can then connect you with reputable contractors who’ll do excellent work for a fair price.

Access

Are you OK with local real estate agents having access to your home anytime? Or would you like your Paffrath & Thomas agent there whenever there’s a showing? 

We take property and security seriously. Whether we’re doing the showing for a potential buyer, or we represent you while other agents show the property, we will make sure all lights are on during showing and off after. We will secure access points so that no lock is left unlocked. 

We also make sure snow is removed during the snow season to allow access. We’ve been known to shovel walks, steps, and more ourselves. Remember, you’re not just a customer. You’re a neighbor. It’s just what we do in our mountain towns.

Closing Time

Whether you’re selling or buying remotely, Paffrath & Thomas will liaison with title companies and lawyers to electronically attain signatures on contracts and closing paperwork.

If any of these items require physical signatures. We can get mobile notaries to come to your door for personal signatures. Alpha to omega, hopes created at the start to champagne cork popped at the finish line, Paffrath & Thomas will be with you for the journey.

Our Online Tools for Remote Access to Properties

Paffrath & Thomas Real Estate puts tools at your fingertips to search Summit County when you’re selling remotely, or buying a house sight unseen, 

Find a Home

This tool helps you zero in on an area, then pick your amenities according to your desired lifestyle. Within a few clicks you’ll see a list of properties that most closely match your wants and needs. It’s like your own person 24/7/365 real estate agent for Summit County!

Selling My Home

Whether you’re looking to trade up or trade out, we can help you sell your mountain property. Check out this tool for discovering the best way to bring your address to market.

What Is My Home Worth?

Wondering what your Summit County property is worth? With our valuation tool, you can get a fast answer to this important beginning question.

Market Data

Keep up with the constantly fluctuating market conditions in Summit County here, with easy to understand graphs on historical market data.

We’re Here When You’re There

Personal service begins with good people. At Paffrath & Thomas Real Estate, we’re not just your agents. We’re your neighbors. Our team offers a perspective on the Summit County market that few others can match, plus we offer an invitation to share the lifestyle that we love.

Come for the winter, stay for the summer. Even if you’re buying a house sight unseen, we’ll make sure it’s right for you. Contact us today. We’re ready to help you come home.