Walkthrough Photos and Video: What You Should Receive

After a walkthrough on a house you cannot visit, you should receive a dated set of photos and at least one continuous video that cover every room, all four sides of the exterior, the roof line, the electrical panel, the water heater, the plumbing under the sinks, the garage and anything that later appears as a deduction. Each deduction on the written offer should point to a photo you can open. If a room, a system or a deduction has no picture behind it, ask for one before you compare numbers.

This page is part of the Out-of-State and Absentee Owners section. The whole remote sale, in order, is in the remote sale workflow, start to finish; this page is only about step 4, what comes back to you after someone walks the house.

Why the photos matter more when you live far away

An owner down the street can drive over and look at the stain on the ceiling. An owner in another state is pricing a house from a screen. The photos and video are the only evidence you have of the condition that both numbers were built on: the as-is cash purchase offer from independent buyers and investors, and the open-market read, which is a preliminary estimate, not an appraisal. Neither is an automated estimate, which never sees the house, and neither is a certified appraisal, which is done by a licensed appraiser for a lender, a court or an estate.

So the test is simple. Could you sit with the offer sheet in one window and the photos in another and find the picture behind every line? If yes, the set is complete.

The complete set, room by room

AreaWhat you should seeWhy it matters to the numbers

Exterior

All four sides, the front from the street, the driveway and walks

Grading, drainage, siding and paint condition

Roof line

Wide shots from the ground on each side, plus any visible damage up close

Roof age and repair lines

Electrical panel

The panel closed, then open with the label legible, if it is safe to open

Original panels are a recurring line on older tract houses

Water heater

The unit, its label, the straps or bracing, and the floor around it

Age, leaks, and the strapping California requires

Heating and cooling

The furnace or wall unit, any outside condenser and its label

Replacement lines

Kitchen and baths

Each wall, the cabinets open under every sink, the floor at the toilet base

Leaks, soft floors, dated finishes

Every other room

Each wall and the ceiling, windows, flooring

Stains, cracks, missing fixtures

Garage and outbuildings

Inside and out, including any converted space

Unpermitted space is priced differently

Yard

Fences, trees near the house, any pool or spa

Overgrowth and pool condition can draw notices

Utilities

Meters, the water shut-off, whether power and water were on

What could and could not be tested

Ask for the photos in their original files, with the date each was taken, rather than screenshots. A shared folder is easier to keep than a run of text messages, and it lets you forward the set to a sibling, a co-trustee or your own contractor.

The video: one continuous walk

Photos show detail; a video shows how the rooms connect, which is what you lose by not being there. A useful video starts at the front door and walks the house in one take, room by room, ending in the garage and the yard. Narration helps: "this is the back bedroom, the stain is above the window." A video that cuts between rooms is fine for a short clip of one problem, but the main walk should be continuous, so you can see that nothing was skipped.

If something matters to you that the set does not show, such as a built-in your parents added or a tree you worry about, ask for it by name. A second short clip is a small request; a flight is not.

What should be photographed closely, and what should not

Close-ups belong on anything that becomes a line on the offer: the ceiling stain, the cracked tile, the panel label, the water heater straps. California's Health and Safety Code requires water heaters to be braced, anchored or strapped against earthquake motion, and a seller certifies compliance to the buyer in writing, so a clear photo of the straps answers a question escrow paperwork will ask anyway.

Close-ups do not belong on your family's papers, photographs, mail or a tenant's belongings. A house full of a parent's things should be shown as rooms, not as an inventory of private life. If a tenant lives there, the walkthrough happens on proper notice and the photos stay on the condition of the house; see notice to enter for a walkthrough. If you need documents or valuables found before anything else happens, that is its own job; see what to find before you leave the rest.

Matching photos to the offer sheet

The written report puts two numbers side by side, each with comps, line-item deductions and a net. The photos are what let you check the deductions. Here is the comparison you should be able to make, with every figure shown as a dash:

Deduction lineAmountPhoto or clip it points to

Roof

-

-

Electrical

-

-

Plumbing

-

-

Contents removal

-

-

Unpermitted space

-

-

Three questions to ask about any line: which photo shows it, how the amount was reached, and whether it assumed repair or replacement. If you already hold a contractor bid or an old inspection report, put it next to the photos and see where they differ.

What the photos cannot tell you

A walkthrough is not a home inspection and not an appraisal. It will not show what is inside a wall, under a slab or in a sewer line. If power or water were off, the panel, the lights and the plumbing could not be tested, and the photos should say so instead of implying they work; see utility shut-offs and a sale. Unknowns tend to widen deductions on the cash side, which is one reason a house that is in good shape, with utilities on and time to show it, often nets more on the open market.

Local details a good set catches

Walkthroughs here start from Claremont, and the photo set should reflect what is specific to the house, not a generic list. Two examples from next door in La Verne:

• A manufactured home in one of La Verne's parks. The set should show the home, its skirting and any additions, and the space around it, because the value depends on the home, the space rent and the park's approval of a buyer, not on nearby house sales.
• A foothill house above Base Line Road. Larger lots, views and fire exposure put these houses in a different market from Old Town La Verne, so the set should show the slope, the vegetation around the house and the roof, not just the rooms.

When the set tells you to list instead

Sometimes the photos show a house in better shape than you feared: sound roof, updated panel, clean rooms. That is useful information. When the open-market read nets more and you have the time and someone trusted to manage showings, the written recommendation says so, and you are introduced to a designated local expert, an independently licensed California agent who works that neighborhood. The trade-offs of managing a listing from another state are in selling a Southern California house from out of state.

What this looks like in practice

These are the kinds of files that come in, described without names or figures.

• An heir in Oregon who had not been inside her father's La Verne house in years, and who used the video to decide what to ship before deciding anything about price.
• Two siblings in different states who disagreed about a ceiling stain until both could open the same dated photo next to the plumbing line on the offer.

Next step

Start with the out-of-state owner page or call (909) 498-3977. Tell us the address, how access works and where the photos should go. There is no cost and no obligation to get the two numbers and the written report.

Sources

• California Health and Safety Code section 19211 (water heater bracing and the seller's written certification), copy read on california.public.law, accessed November 6, 2026
• City of La Verne, Mobile Home Parks (parks and the mobile home rent review chapter of the municipal code): laverneca.gov, accessed November 6, 2026

A walkthrough is not a home inspection or an appraisal. Cash offers come from independent buyers and investors who buy for their own account and may resell for profit; a cash offer is generally below what the open market would bring. Any value shown is a preliminary estimate, not an appraisal. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice.