On Friday, I previewed a great house. And it had a big old "Open Sunday 1 - 4" rider on the For Sale sign.
It was a Wow House, and I called some favorite buyers to let them know that it was one of a two-house alert. We met at another house in the neighborhood then headed to Wow House for the Open.
But something was off. There was a big For Sale sign with no open rider or open arrows in sight. When I previewed the place, it looked like the sellers had moved, and there was every reason to believe that the listing agent was running a little bit late. Still, before putting my Sentrilock card into the lockbox, I thought that it might perhaps be a good idea to call.
I dialed the contact number on the listing printout that I thought was the listing agent. When there was an answer on the other end, I could hear a shower running. And the person who answered was not the listing agent, but the seller who had just stepped out of the shower.
The seller said to come on in, and to start on the two lower levels before coming upstairs. So we did. And while we were there, another woman came by for the Open.
It's really important when we are marketing an occupied home that our showing instructions are clear and unambiguous. And perhaps we need "Open House Canceled" riders to add to our signs!
No doubt about it. Having a house for sale while you're living in it is a total invasion of privacy waiting to happen. And sellers in a shower, or worse, is not the best sort of staging prop.
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