Can you buy a house with bitcoin?

Yes, you can buy a house with bitcoin in the US, but the seller usually ends up with dollars, not coins. A typical deal runs the bitcoin through a conversion service that sells it and sends cash into escrow, so the closing itself looks like an ordinary cash purchase.

How does buying a house with bitcoin work in the USA?

US closings are built around dollar wires into an escrow or title account, so crypto buyers normally use a service that converts the coins first.

One example came in 2021, when the American Land Title Association reported that Altisource let buyers on two of its property sites send bitcoin and several other coins to a payment processor. The processor converted them to dollars at a fixed rate and sent the funds into the escrow account of an affiliated title company.

Specialist firms work in a similar way. RealOpen, for instance, says the buyer sends bitcoin to a funding address, the firm converts it after the transfer confirms, and it then wires dollars to escrow or title. A quote is locked only briefly, so market swings can matter if a transfer is delayed. Paying a seller directly in bitcoin is possible but less common.

Is it taxable to buy property with bitcoin?

In the US it can be. The IRS says virtual currency is treated as property, and using it to pay for goods or exchanging it for other property is a disposal. You compare the fair market value of what you receive with your cost basis in the coins. The difference is a capital gain or loss, which is short-term or long-term depending on whether you held the coins for more than one year.

Moving coins between your own wallets before the sale is not a taxable event in itself, according to the same IRS FAQ. Our guide on how crypto is taxed in the US covers the basics, and crypto cost basis explains how the gain is measured.

Can you use crypto for a down payment on a mortgage?

That depends on the lender. In June 2025 the Federal Housing Finance Agency directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare proposals for counting crypto held on US-regulated exchanges toward a borrower's reserves. That was a step toward new underwriting rules, not a final rule. When a buyer finances a home, the lender decides which assets count and by when any crypto has to be converted. The details are covered in can you get a mortgage with crypto.

What should buyers check before paying with crypto?

Buyers usually confirm that the title or escrow company will accept funds from a conversion service, how long the price quote is held, and how network fees and confirmation times fit the closing deadline. Identity checks and proof of funds are standard, and keeping records of the original purchase price of the coins helps when the gain is reported.

Rules differ by country and change often. Check the tax authority or a qualified professional for your own situation.