Really!  Would you?  Would you like it if the store had a rule: the clerk has to ACCOMPANY you INTO the dressing room, and wait while you disrobe, and try on that dress, or pants or worse SWIMSUIT? 

OF COURSE you would hate it, you would probably hurry out of the store, uncomfortable, and even irritated, as you did seem to like it.....but with the clerk hovering and watching, you certainly didn't want to try it on!  And without trying it on, you probably pass on buying it.

Well, that is exactly what happens when the seller stays home for the showing!  The buyers feel uncomfortable...They want to look in the closets, but feel they are invading the sellers privacy since the seller is standing right there! They want to flush the toilet....does that really matter?  No, but they wantto do it, just to make sure everything is ok....But with the seller standing there, hovering, they don't...So they leave the house, probably sooner than they would have, if they had a private showing with only their agent (NOT THE SELLERS)!  They didn't feel comfortable asking questions of their agent or discussing items right there, in front of the seller.  They might later, that is if they don't forget....

What if the store clerk kept going on and on and on about what a deal that dress was, and how much time and money had been put into it?  And how it was made with special thread, or that the address sign was made out of blond walnut  or WHATEVER.....Yes it would seem like the clerk was desperate for a sale for some reason...well that is also what happens when the seller stays home!  Every time the buyer says something (that is IF the buyer says something with the seller standing right there), the seller has a come back, they are defensive,....pretty soon, that seller is sounding desperate! 

Does it really matter to the buyer how much the custom drapes costs? (usually thousands, and usually the buyer will be removing them once they move in!) NO!!  Does it matter that the seller did this, and did that, and that?  NO!!  The buyer is looking at the house and knows if they like it by the FEEL of it...most likely nothing the seller will say will really push the buyer over the edge of buying!  BUT, something the seller slips might cause the buyer to be more interested....something that shows the seller is desperate to sell, and now the buyer wants a DEAL on the house!  I know of a buyer who was ready to buy.  They looked at the house one more time.  The seller was home, and said a little too much.  Now the buyer knew the seller was desperate, and the buyer wrote $5,000 lower due to that information! The buyer got the house cheaper, and the seller's big mouth   statement COST HIM MONEY!!!

So next time you have a seller that wants to stay home for showings, tell them to think twice!  Better yet, ask them if they'd like it if the clerk had to come in the dressing room with them!!