Does a remote 3D scan actually screen a distant property, or just delay the flight
Take a 6-unit deal several hundred miles from the buyer, 1968 brick, all 2 bed units, asking $640k, seller reporting gross rents around $6,150 a month. A typical listing might carry a handful of photos, mostly exterior and one kitchen shot from different angles, with no confirmation anyone has been inside several of the units in the last two years. A flight, rental car, and overnight stay easily runs $700 and consumes a day and a half. A local photographer offering a full building scan for a few hundred dollars, with per-unit pricing past a threshold, can often cover the whole property and common areas for well under $500, with a two day turnaround. What a buyer typically has going in is a rent roll with no leases attached, a tax bill, and whatever paperwork the seller happens to have on hand. Underwriting gross rents at a standard expense load usually lands somewhere in the low 7% cap range at asking price before any capital improvements. A scan is useful for layout and finish level, but it doesn't substitute for a physical inspection, it can't surface deferred maintenance below the surface, and it has more value as a screening tool for ruling a deal out than as confirmation to move forward on. The right framing is that a few hundred dollars spent to kill a bad deal before booking a flight is money well spent, while a few hundred dollars spent to avoid making a decision is a delay dressed up as diligence. The distinction is whether the buyer would actually walk away from a bad scan result or is looking for a reason to keep the option open a little longer.
