In 2017, Sheryl Lowe of Kuper Sotheby’s International Realty in Austin helped four different buyers purchase homes using bitcoin, a digital currency that exists separate of any government or central bank.
Lowe didn’t know she would be handling her first bitcoin transaction until she asked the buyer about whether he intended to pay cash or get a loan.
关于虚拟货币需要记住的3件事
值会波动. The value of one bitcoin can change on a day-to-day basis. 例如，一个比特币价值6611美元.79 on July 2; $6,216.29 on July 13; $8,436.12 on July 24; and $7,574.8月2日.
这是应税. 美国.S. government treats bitcoin and other virtual currency as property, which includes paying capital gains tax on property transactions. 更多信息请访问国税局网站.
这可能需要更多的工作. Not all participants in a transaction will be comfortable working with virtual currency. Buyers or sellers who aren’t familiar with it may need more information; your client may need to shop around for the right title company; and buyers who need additional financing may have a hard time finding a traditional loan.
“He said, ‘Well, it really is cash,’” 罗伊说. When she said he’d need to verify the funds were available, he went to his briefcase and took out about four pages of codes written on paper. “I’ll be paying with bitcoin,” the buyer told Lowe. 从那时起, Lowe’s first transaction has been featured in national news media and she’s helped more buyers branch into real estate with their digital fortunes.
Although she’d already heard about bitcoin before that first transaction, she watched webinars and read books to better understand the currency and what would be involved for her buyer.
Having an open-minded listing agent and seller was vital to a successful transaction, 罗伊说. Her first buyer even met with the seller to further explain the process and put all parties at ease.
It also helped having a title company that accommodated the process and extra legwork involved with converting bitcoin to cash for the seller. There are fees associated with that conversion, 罗伊说, 但根据她的经验, 买方通常会支付这些费用.
罗伊说 the rest of a bitcoin transaction works in much the same way as a typical cash purchase and that parties must still follow the law.
While the most activity involving bitcoin came when it reached a price of nearly $18,到2017年底，每枚比特币的价格为1万美元, 罗伊说 she anticipates more diversification into real estate from bitcoin owners.