so...whos purchased a home without being in the area :)

[notnamed]

Yeah that’s the biggest reason we went the short term rental route. Wanted to be able to accept and put in offers without contingencies and close quickly on both ends.

[WeezulMaster]

You sound like me! We came up last year to look around, talked to a realtor (he's still helping me and doing a great job), weighed out the area. Texasdiver and StealthRabbit on here have been extremely helpful as well.

We planned on March/April for a purchase & move...yeah, that didn't happen. But we're back on the horse now. It's horrendously hard to find a suitable property, but we're confident we can. Our jobs come with us, so no need for worries there.

I do plan to make an offer first (in the Bay Area right now), but I'll come up to close & walk it. You and I both should have a full inspection done - they'll know what to look for better than us!

[Farmer15]

We purchased our home here in 2018 while still living on the east coast. We had scouted out in advance some of the neighborhoods we were interested in (both online and in 2 actual visits), then waited for a suitable house to hit the market. When it did, we had our realtor show it to us via FaceTime and quickly made an offer and arranged for inspection. We knew things would pop in the inspection (as they always do) that would allow us to back out if we needed to. This allowed me to fly out straight away to see the property in person, an expense I would recommend making for peace of mind. My husband then did the same so he could be at the property during the inspection. We were lucky in that it was a quick closing with no real issues, as the owner had already moved out. So, yes, it is totally doable but much easier when you've been able to do all your prep work in advance. We ended up in Salmon Creek near the WSU campus and are loving it here. Best of luck to you!

[MtnSurfer]

We did it remotely with a lot of input from our realtor including pictures and videos of the houses she was looking at for us. Then, when we found a few we were ready to make an offer on, we flew my wife out for in-person inspections and personal preference validation. An offer was made and accepted while the house was still in the final stages of construction.

In a perfect world, we would have rented first and taken our sweet time to cherry pick everything in person. But since we lived and worked out of state, it just wasn't very practical. Plus, my wife *hated* the idea of moving twice even though I would have been willing to. So, we made the best of it and really do like our new home overall. It's far from perfect, but it is a good fit for this life stage we're in with kids in a school district we all like.

I will mention that the market is pretty crazy hot right now. I've heard of homes going for above asking price. I'm not sure if it's a covid thing related to new remote work options or what. But you just have to aware of current conditions working with a good agent with her/his boots on the ground for you. Lastly, do not discount the new homes being built. Some are not even listed yet. Rather, there are great projects in the works and so people get in early and pick the best lots at the onset. We have some new ones coming up near and others that are almost complete. Camas has some new ones as well. Be careful which builder you go with. They all have different levels of quality as well as certain things they are known for both good and bad. Don't go with the lowest end national builders if you can avoid it as you also get lower quality.

Derek

[cyberous]

Be ready to pull the trigger.

I would first outline the areas you want to be in and keep an eye on what comes on the market. John L Scott ( popular in PNW) lets you set up lots of watch areas. Get a good realtor who can get access to the house quickly and do facetime/zoom/duo with you or make a video walk through. Don’t expect the realtor to find you the home, they do this on a daily basis so its just a job. You’re looking for a future home so will have greater sense of urgency.

Have your finances ready to go and be the strongest offer. If you like a house, make an offer. Once offer is accepted get on a plane and come see the property, flights are so cheap and flexible right now and PDX is ~$25 uber ride. Inspections are a typical way out of offers if the house does not meet your needs.

We did this in 2015.

Good luck!