Home Sellers Say Take Your Shoes Off

Good morning Beth. For all our homes that we flip, we have everyone take off their shoes or put on shoe covers that we supply. Have never seen anyone get upset, actually they have more respect for the property and us.

Good morning Beth,

An excellent article..good points. I always provide shoe covers for buyers and agents entering  my listings. In most cases the sellers have spent good money to clean the carpets or install new. It is just the respectful thing to do. In Austin many cultures do not wear shoes inside their home and out of respect one would never leave their shoes on when entering their homes.

Excellent post....some demands by the sellers just don't make a buyer feel comfortable and will chase them away.  But shoe covers should be provided by the agent if they are showing a house where sellers want "no shoes".

Hi Beth.  For those that insist on making people take their shoes off, they should supply a set of shoe/foot socks and thus reduce the hassle and yucky factor.

Beth: Shoe covers are a good solution when homeowners insist buyers take their shoes off before entering the home.

Great points.  Personally when I am told to take off my shoes, I get extremely irritated.  If you have booties then ok but I still think it's stupid.  If your property is for sale and the carpeting gets a little matted or dirty in the 6 months of showings, clean it.

While it is rare to find the booties you speak of at listed properties, they are a great idea.  In fact, a couple of years ago, I sold a vacant luxury home, where they were found in a basket near the front door.  The beauty of the booties was after inspecting the dwelling, we wanted to view the back yard and grounds.  We were able to temporarily remove the booties, and walk through the gardens, before placing them back on once again to walk back through the house to the front door. 

Good morning Beth. I like the booties idea. In my experience many of the take your shoes off homes are the dirtiest I ever showed. Moreover, if the instructions were not published on the listing, I didn't go through the home unless booties were available.

Beth, in May it rained here almost every day, and we always got the instructions of -- remove your shoes! 

Booties are a good option. Some elderly folks really have a hard time taking off shoes easily - booties are a good choice for them. I agree, make folks enjoy the process of looking at a home. 

Hi Beth, Booties are clearly the best option, I agree! If booties it is, make sure there is a place to sit down while you are putting them on and taking them off though. 

I agree with everything you said here. If you must have a list, at least do it with a positive spin though, and with a bit of humor! 

Well, I don't agree with the dog thing. Remove dogs for showings. End of story. 

Beth...it does sometimes get out of hand...doesn't it! The list can get a little silly.

The one I hate most is "call 15 minutes before arrival" (like I have nothing else to think about while out with a client and why did I make an appointment in advance in the first place?).

Beth the more obsticals a Seller creates, the longer it will take to sell the property.  Sellers really need to consider whether the restrictions are worth the extra selling time.

The request to remove shoes is interesting.  I run across it all the time.  If sellers don't want the freshly shampooed carpet walked on, put down some carpet protection tape.

Hi Beth, this is a very informative post. Putting on too much demand on sellers may turn them off. Thanks for sharing. 

I have asctually had buyers refuse to take their shoes off and when no booties were available decide they don't want to see the house. It can be very offending to buyers and an unreasonable request at times.

Booties are a great idea....it's what I did at my home when it was for sale. But only when the weather required it. Otherwise I let them keep their shoes on, even though I prefer no shoes in my home.

Beth Atalay many of my clients do not want the guests with the shoes on - just for religious purpose! Booties of course is the best answer.

Buyers do feel uncomfortable without shoes on. I remember wondering how clean those tile floors were.