A 3D scan can be genuinely useful before you visit, but it is worth being clear about what it does and does not catch.
What a Matterport scan gives you is a navigable model of the interior spaces as they were on the day of capture. You can measure room dimensions, check ceiling heights, trace the layout, and spot things like a load-bearing wall in an awkward place or a bathroom stacked over a kitchen that would complicate plumbing work. That is the kind of layout problem your contact described, and that is a real, repeatable use case.
What it does not give you is condition. The scan captures surfaces as they appear to a camera. It will not tell you the age of the mechanicals, whether there is moisture behind a wall, what the electrical panel looks like inside, or anything a physical inspection would find by touch, smell, or a trained eye. For a $1.1M multifamily building, you would still want a licensed inspector on site before you commit.
So the honest framing is: a scan is a good way to answer layout and workflow questions early, before you spend money on a flight and a hotel. It is not a substitute for due diligence, which for a building that size typically includes a physical inspection and a review of actual financials. A qualified inspector or contractor would be the right person to define what that inspection should cover.
At $400 or so, a scan is a low-cost way to decide whether the building is even worth the trip. Whether it replaces a first visit entirely depends on what questions you are trying to answer at that stage.
What are the specific renovation concerns you have about the Wichita building? That would help narrow down whether a scan is likely to address them.
