Buyers Gather Information from Satellite Photos

Greg and Jess know what they want in a house and have been looking for about two months. They want a yard - but not too big - and they want a nice setting. They have to think of resale down the road, so they know location is key. We looked at a house yesterday in Franklin county.

"There's pasture behind this house," Greg said.

I looked out the back yard and all I saw were trees and more trees.

"I looked at the satellite picture," he added.

So much information is available today that was not available just a few years ago. Buyers view satellite photos of houses and check out the surrounding properties before even making an appointment to see a home.

"We were interested in one house," Jess said, "and when we looked at the satellite picture, there was a junk yard behind the house and junk on either side." Needless to say, they didn't add that house to their "favorites." It saved us all time by checking the satellite photos.

Buyers can "google" an address and see if there are any issues that come up. I once had a buyer search an address and it was near a Super Fund clean up site. Buyers are savvy and will use technology to help them.

Google maps are a great way to "walk down a street" and see what is around the house you are interested in. Not all streets have been mapped, but many have. You can get a street view of your potential house and decide if it's the neighborhood for you. Remember, your walking tour is not always from recent photos, but it's a good tool.

So, Jess, Greg and I won't have to get on our hiking boots and spray ourselves with insect repellent to find out what is on the other side of the trees. We can lean back in our chairs at our desks and see lovely pastures!