Real Estate Safety Tips For Home Sellers

If you are planning on putting your home up for sale, whether as a FOR SELL BY OWNER or through a real estate agent, please follow these simple rules for safety’s sake! Real estate agents meeting "buyers" alone at otherwise un-occupied homes have resulted in rapes, murders, theft, and vandalism.

Fortunately, there are some steps a home seller can take to reduce the chances of harm to themselves or their property when they decide to sell their home.

Real Estate Safety Tips

Have a Plan- . Identify who will be responsible for showing the home (you, your agent, the buyer's agent) and how they will obtain access. DO NOT USE A HIDE-A-KEY or even a combination lock-box, as you have no idea who ultimately knows the code.

Schedule Your Showings - You should understand the plan for access to your home. On the one hand, you need to make access as easy as possible so that you can get buyers to see your home (when their schedules allow), but on the other hand, do not make it as simple as "just stopping by." .

Protect Your Property - I know of stories of those who have had medical prescriptions stolen during showings. I suspect that theft occurs more often in real estate showings than we know, so a homeowner needs to take basic precautions when the home hits the market. Secure your valuables, and secure your prescription medications.

Control Access To Your Home .. If you are a homeowner selling alone, you need to consider personal safety too when you develop your home selling plan. We know that open houses produce less than 1% of home sales in the US. That means that somebody knocking on your door has less than a 1% likelihood of buying it, so do you really want to let them in?

Never Show Your Home Alone - Unless you personally know the person asking to see your home, make sure you qualify them first, and then schedule them to see your home when you and somebody else will be there. Don't let them stroll through the house alone, rather guide them through the home and ask them questions (this will help promote a sale of your property 

It is sad that we have evolved to a point where an article like this is needed, but please heed my advice. You can sell your home and for the most part "enjoy the process," but a little preparation is necessary.