With the
housing market crash is 2008 many people have wondered if the real estate
industry will ever recover. Traditional home buying trends have been stagnant,
but many believe there are different ways to sell their homes, with online
auctions being a new alternative.
Or how about a 3 bedroom waterfront home in Nebraska for
$249,000?
According to Janet Wickwell, there are risks associated with
buying a home online that you have never seen. First, there could be issues
with the deed or title of the property. The property might have a foreclosure
on it or there may be serious leans against the property. The home also may be
in need of serious repair.
With traditional housing markets the buyers usually get a
chance to do a walkthrough with the house and assess any issues the home may
have but this isn’t always done with an online home auction, so buyer beware.
Where can you buy a home online?
There are many websites online that can assist you in
bidding on and buying a home. Each website is different, but here a few to look
at:
What do you think, would you buy a home online?
By: Tracy Harper
Sources:
Purchasing a house is a major financial commitment. Buying such an important item online is a risky idea. When a seller posts pictures and information about a house, he or she is attempting to feature the house in only the most positive ways. The buyer may be left completely unaware of serious issues concerning the house itself or its surroundings. I would not buy a house online even if it was being sold well below market as a "fixer-upper". Beyond the financial aspects, the house one chooses affects many parts of a person's life and therefore should not be purchased without considerable research.
ReplyDeleteI agree. There should always be diligent research done on any major investment.
DeleteI'm hesitant about buying textbooks off of Ebay, much less a house. I don't think it's a smart idea to put yourself in the position for such a scam. The "lovely house" you found on the internet may not ever exist. A house is very essential to living and is not worth the risk. I know everyone wants to save money but purchasing a house online isn't a good idea.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, this seems like a bad idea to me. There are so many factors that could go wrong and so many scams that could be committed as a result of this. There is no way to know if the seller is representing the property truthfully. Buying any product from a site such as Ebay runs some level of risk, as you never know how truthful the description of the product may be. However, taking the risk with smaller products is a lot different than the risk of buying a house.
ReplyDeleteThere is no way I would ever purchase a house online. It's not like you are buying a something small and insignificant. This is a house we are talking about! There are so many risks associated with buying a house online. Is the house completely trashed on the inside? Is the house in a good neighborhood? Is the person "selling" the house even the owner? Does the house even exist? These are the first few things that pop into my head. In my opinion, buying a house online is never a good idea.
ReplyDeleteThose are all understandable concerns about purchasing a home online. As with all auctions, there are risks associated with it.
DeleteI really don't understand how people are so trustworthy online that they make such major purchases. I'm sure Ebay does what it can to ensure to its customers that it is providing truthful information, but things can still slide under their radar. I feel like I could just go take a picture of my next-door neighbors house, post it on Ebay, and I would be about as honest as any of those other home sellers.
ReplyDeleteWhat about a real estate auction website? Would you trust the seller on there?
DeleteAs cool as this is, to think we have entered into a world that is advanced enough to buy houses online I dont think I would buy a house online. I have trouble buying cell phone cases on ebay! I wouldn't be able to trust the other user with such a high volume purchase.
ReplyDeleteThe only way I could see buying houses online as a semi good idea is if you bought and sold houses for a living and was just looking to flip it really quick, assuming you got it for a really good price in the auction. But when I get ready to buy my first home I definitely do not think I will do it over the internet.
ReplyDeleteI think this is often the case with people that buy homes online. They buy them to either flip quickly for profit or to rent out.
DeleteBuying a house online is something I've never even heard of or thought about. The thought of spending the much money without seeing it in person amazes me that someone would do such a thing. I actually just went to ebay and was amazed at how many houses there are available online. Something that I'll most likely never do is buy a house online but it is fascinating that it is an option.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'll ever buy a house online because that is something I have to live in for a long time. A house is an investment that your family and friends will come into so I would like to know what happened there and around there.
ReplyDeleteI think people who buy homes to rent them out are the beneficiaries in these situations. It becomes another home to add to their portfolio. Would you ever consider buying a home online if you were planning to rent it out and not live in it?
DeleteAuctioning off a house on ebay to me has to be a ridiculous concept. When purchasing a house information such as equity value, renovations, location, and other factors have to take palce before buying a house, let alone online. Technology is very good towards our society, but too much technology can be detrimental to societ as well. A picture of “good" qualities hide those the “bad“qualities, that realtors try to hide in oreder to entice the buyer to purchsse the home. A home cannot be compared to products found on ebay due to the overall importance that a house serves a family.
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ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting trend. Obviously the internet has had a huge impact on the way houses are sold. The ability to advertise a house to a larger market than any news paper is a very appealing thing. However buying/selling a house in an auction format seems alien to me. I compare this to buying/selling a car on eBay. It is done very often, however for me it is too large of a purchase to make in an auction setting. I suppose for a person looking to buy a house to rent or to fix and sell it is an attractive forum. The houses on eBay are obviously listed for much less than any traditional real estate market, however it seems crazy to buy a house without seeing it first hand. Pictures can say a lot, but I would not buy a house or car without first seeing it in person.
ReplyDeleteIt would be interesting to see what happens with houses sold on eBay. My guess is that most of them will be for sale again within a year or two.
That very well may be true.
DeleteIf you could see it in person, would you consider buying it online? What if the listing was close to where you live so you could drive by to check it out?
ReplyDeleteI would buy a lot of things on eBay, but not a home. There are way too many variables to consider when buying a home. Pictures can only do so much in showing the true condition of something such as a home. It would be different if you first saw the home in person and then went on an auction site and bid. Though I imagine that eBay's goal is to target a very broad audience, many of whom have never seen the item they will be bidding on.
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