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The ease - or not - of showings

By Andrea Bedard

Real Estate Agent with Thompson Company, REALTORS® 240.593.2860 MD594797

March 14, 2012 10:45 AM

The ease - or not - of showings

Ideally, all I have to jot down on my listing paper is OK, lock box front door when making my showing appointments. Occasionally there are a couple more instructions such as an alarm, walk around the house to locate the lock box on the back door or knock loudly first. Not a problem .. although the alarm had me jumping a few times in the past (oops sorry we gave you the wrong code).

Today, though, I found myself reaching for another piece of paper because of the lengthy instructions:

lock box not on front door, on garage,
look closely, may be hidden
key not front door, find sliders close by
don't put key in all the way, slightly out, jiggle
turn all the way to left, then all the way to right
jiggle if it wont open, sometimes stuck
alarm is in kitchen, code xxxx
no. 2 doesn't always work, push hard,
disarm and arm b/f you leave
dog in crate (they hope?),
open door slowly, check first
nice dog, only barks (??)
cats may be in yard, don't let them inside

Oh OKAY! HUH???! Really??? The house has been on the market for almost a year - without ever looking at it, I think we know why!

We'll just pass on this one and go to the house that's OK, lock box front door!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Advice for Sellers:

A commission bonus is not what sells your house!
Would you put an offer on the stinky house?
Let the sunshine in!

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Marnie Matarese

DWELL REAL ESTATE - Sarasota, FL

Showing you the best of Sarasota!

The difficulty of being able to get into a listing often explains the lengthy time on market. I always explain to my sellers that the price of a new lock with a key that opens it easily may be the difference in getting the home sold. I have had to crawl through flowerbeds, search under 30 flowerpots to find the one the key is under and much worse. Is it really so difficult to just put the lockbox in a sane place with a key that works?

Mar 14, 2012 10:51 AM

Melinda (Mel) Peterson

Grants Pass, OR - Bend, OR

The Savvy Broker - ABR, CRS

How unfortunate for the Seller... Andrea! For goodness sakes, they should make the house easier to show!

Mar 14, 2012 10:54 AM

Kathy Stoltman

Ventura, CA

RETIRED

That's a good one, have not experienced that lengthy of a showing instruction, but have felt other frustrating showings and one frustrating aspect is getting a code from an agent who did not put a lockbox on the property!

Mar 14, 2012 11:01 AM

Shannon Jones

The Shannon Jones Team - Long Beach, CA

Long Beach CA Real Estate

Andrea, seriously good advice! We just listed a home and the seller was trying to explain the tricky front door lock to me and started into a description of exactly how you had to jiggle the key and then if you pushed a particular button then it wouldn't work for the next person. I told her that she just needed to get a locksmith out to take care of the issue. She wants top dollar for her home and people are going to expect things like the front door lock to work.

Mar 14, 2012 11:01 AM

Mike Cooper, Broker VA,WV

Cornerstone Business Group Inc - Winchester, VA

Your Neighborhood Real Estate Sales Pro

I think I see why it has been on the market so long. Oy vey! I had a lock today that concerned me a bit. It seemed looked, but if you shook the door enough it popped right open. I hated to leave it, but fortunately the house was vacant. So, there was nothing to steal, but it still wasn't good. Have a great Thursday.

Mar 14, 2012 11:07 AM

Bill Reddington

Re/max By The Sea - Destin, FL

Destin Florida Real Estate

Don't blame you. It is like going across town to pick up a key. I just don't do it anymore. Sometimes listing agents need to wake up.

Mar 14, 2012 11:10 AM

Andrea Bedard

Thompson Company, REALTORS® 240.593.2860 - Silver Spring, MD

Fluent in Real Estate & German, M.A. ABR ASP CIPS

Hi Marnie: Very true! I've had to search for lock boxes that were so well hidden that I almost gave up but, at least, after finding it the door was easy to unlock and there was no potential guard dog greeting us.

Hi Mel: Indeed! And it could be a really nice home! I can deal with looking around for the lock box and even having to jiggle the key a bit but the alarm pad had me hear sirens and I really didn't feel like finding out whether or not the dog was in a crate.

Hi Kathy: I had one where the agent couldn't remember the exact code and gave me a bunch of variations to try! It was a lovely home though and the lock box opened after the 2nd attempt. *phew*

Hi Shannon: Thankfully, most showings fall under the "OK, lock box front door" category. This one just had me shaking my head. I do feel bad for the seller ..I hope your seller listens to you!

Hi Mike: I know which house you are talking about :-) It's almost like we have to have the LA sign a disclosure before we show "You are aware that the door will just open and it is not my fault!"

Hi Bill: Yep, this one was just a bit much!

Mar 14, 2012 11:19 AM

Mona Gersky

MoonDancer Realty, Dillsboro,NC - Sylva, NC

GRI,IMSD-Taking the mystery out of real estate.

Andrea...if I thought the buyers had any interest, I would just insist that the listing agent come open the door. Sounds like you'd have spent a silly amt of time getting in.

Mar 14, 2012 01:55 PM

Kasey & John Boles

Jon Gosche Real Estate, LLC - BoiseMeridianRealEstate.com - Boise, ID

Boise & Meridian, ID Ada/Canyon/Gem/Boise Counties

Yeah, crazy. I would still show it if the buyers were really interested in it but I would let them know how silly all the instructions are. Plus, there is liability in having a dog there, potentially letting their cats out, turning the alarm back on incorrectly, etc. I'm with Mona, maybe the listing agent needs to come open the door and sit in her car while you look at it..-Kasey

Mar 15, 2012 05:39 AM

Andrea Bedard

Thompson Company, REALTORS® 240.593.2860 - Silver Spring, MD

Fluent in Real Estate & German, M.A. ABR ASP CIPS

Hi Mona: It sounds like trying to get in is only one of the issues. And one has to wonder, if it's such a hassle to show, what other problems will pop up? If the house was all that then I would definitely try to arrange the showing with the LA but it is not ...

Hi Kasey: My buyer made the decision to pass on it .. can't say I blame him! There were too many other options to see in the short amount of time we had ..

Mar 15, 2012 11:08 AM

Lisa Von Domek

Lisa Von Domek Team - Dallas, TX

....Experience Isn't Expensive.... It's Priceless!

Good morning Andrea,

Oh good grief, these are some of the longest instructions I have come across - The note alone is enough to leave a poor impression on the prospective buyer before they even enter the house. The Seller needs to seriously reconsider their priorities on selling their home...place the lockbox conveniently on or near the front door, fix the locks and alarm, kennel the pets.

Mar 16, 2012 08:50 PM

Andrea Bedard

Thompson Company, REALTORS® 240.593.2860 - Silver Spring, MD

Fluent in Real Estate & German, M.A. ABR ASP CIPS

Hi Lisa, absolutely, and that's why we (and so many others) decided to pass! I'm wondering though, what is really going on? I can't imagine the house ever selling when it's such a hassle to show .. no Open Houses scheduled either, that would at least give people a chance to look at it. Since I don't know the story, I'm not judging but I am wondering what's happening, or rather not happening!

Mar 17, 2012 08:24 AM