Rooms with no view: Estate agents reveal more homes being bought sight unseen as market surges

Growing numbers of homes in Scotland are being bought sight unseen as the property market continues to boom, according to experts.

They have told how desirable properties are attracting offers from bidders who have never stepped inside as buyers rush to secure homes.

The trend comes as the surge in Scotland’s property market continues with reports of homes selling for up to 30% over the asking price.

Average house prices in Scotland reached a record level of £207,877, with July this year seeing the largest increase in average price in a month since March 2015, according to a recently published price index by the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

Jo n n y Di c k s o n , w h o is a director at the country’s largest estate agent, Slater Hogg, said the buying- without- viewing trend is being driven by the booming market and by moneyed buyers from the south of England.

He said: “We have seen a lot more people willing to put offers in without seeing the property because they are either overseas buyers or from the south-east and don’t have time to come up to view.

“We sold a semi-rural ’70s-style lochside villa a few weeks ago. It was on at offers over £ 250,000. It got around 23,000 hits on Rightmove which is among their highest ever and sold for in excess of £350,000.

“The staff in the office fielded thousands of calls from all over the UK. In the end, we had 15 offers and I’d say about half of those were from buyers in the south- east, many of whom hadn’t physically seen the property.”

He added: “Since the pandemic people can work from anywhere, all they need is their laptop, so more and more people are looking for a Scottish retreat where they can work from.

“Someone who works, for example, as a city trader in London can potentially buy a bolthole with their end- of- year bonus so they can afford to take a risk as they are affluent cash buyers.”

Sandra Hill, director at Manor Estate Properties in Uddingston, has also noticed the growing trend, which she believes began due to people being unable to physically view homes during the pandemic.

She said: “The stamp duty holiday and low interest rates have helped lead to a surge in people wanting to buy, as well as people being able to work from home and change their lifestyles.

“As a result, the market is highly competitive at the moment, and we are witnessing huge levels of offers on homes, with some not being viewed before purchase.

“People will swoop in as quickly as they can to secure properties, so will bid highly and remotely before a lot of other people have had a chance to view.

“I had a really unique situation recently where we had put a ‘for sale’ sign outside a house in Anniesland – it wasn’t even up online yet – and someone phoned saying they wanted to put an offer in.

“They hadn’t seen any of the details on our website, never mind seeing inside the property in person, so it just shows how crazy the market is right now.

“But for most people, thanks to videos and virtual tours of properties on our website and other estate agents’ sites, people are able to get at least a sense of a home without actually stepping foot in it.

“The pandemic has meant a shift in the way people want to live and I do think there has been a great number of people wanting to move from England or abroad to Scotland, who are happy to buy and take a risk because they’re really desperate to get a property.

“Covid- 19 also meant people weren’t able to come and view properties the way they had been able to in the past due to social distancing restrictions.”

She added: “There are of course risks that come with not viewing properties before purchase as with fast sales, structural surveys or other checks are impossible, or people might not quite understand certain areas or access to amenities.

“There’s only really so far a photo can go and sometimes they don’t give a proper representation of the property.

“So for that reason we would always advise coming to see the property in person but with the market the way it is right now we do understand this isn’t always possible.”