Tips for showing and viewing foreclosures in freezing temperatures !
Keeping Safe, Warm and Comfortable When Showing Properties
Many of us attempt to show homes in the extremely cold elements, but showing some properties can be difficult and dangerous. Bianca Tinsley offers us some timely advice about keeping not only ourselves, but our Buyers safe and comfortable. Please stop by to visit her post and leave your comments.
Let's face it , it is COLD. I live in Murfreesboro , TN , where it gets in the 100+ temps in July. Today I pulled up my weather channel app as I do every morning to check the level of frigid-ness , so I know if it's a gloves and scarf kinda day, or a gloves, scarf, hat, thermal underwear, 5 layers of clothing kinda day. To my suprise the temperature read -1 and this is in MIDDLE TENNESSEE , one of the supposedly warmest places in the US. We all LOVE our buyers, and we LOVE our buyers that want a deal, because we LOVE finding them deals, BUT deals are often foreclosures. What happens in foreclosures ? More often than not the electricity is off, which means NO heating and air conditioning , which means you may feel like a southerner in the middle of Alaska that forgot all your cool eskimo gear .
There are a few things you can do to make you and your buyers more comfortable.
1. bring blankets... you may feel silly bringing a blanket in to a house you are showing, but you and your clients will both appreciate it ... in fact, if you want bonus points bring a snuggie for everyone, you'll get instant cool points with the kids if they have any. :)
2. plan your showing around the time with the peak temp of the day , when the sun is shining the most, if possible. Don't go show a foreclosure when the sun is down and it is -1 degree outside, no one can focus when they are that uncomfortable.
3. tell your clients UP FRONT, we are looking at a home that will not have heat, and we are in dangerously low temps ... it might be a good idea to bring out your grandma style thermal underwear.... this isn't a fashion show, whatever you can wear to keep warm , wear it!
4. get in and get out, one of my favorite things to tell my clients is "I'm not the seller of this house, I represent YOU, don't try to be nice or sensitive because you think you are going to hurt my feelings, if you aren't feeling the house from the outside , we can skip, if you are getting the heeby jeebies when you enter the house and something is off, let's bolt. We don't want to waste anyone's time, the seller, yours, or mine."
5. this is whether it's cold of not, but ALWAYS bring a flashlight when showing foreclosures, whether it's during the day or not, there will still be rooms where the sunlight doesn't reach , and you want your buyers to be able to see all the rooms
6. if you know your clients are coffee drinkers or if you know they have an affinity for hot cocoa, meet them at the door with a warm beverage they can sip while viewing the home, it's amazing how much a hot cocoa or a coffee will warm you up.
Stay warm out there !! If you are moving to the Middle Tennessee area , please contact me, I'd love to help you... and I will always have blankets and hot cocoa waiting for you at foreclosures when it's 0 degrees outside.
*agents , I'd love you're referrals , if you have a client moving to the Middle TN area, please contact me.
You can check out my facebook page here : https://www.facebook.com/BiancaTinsleyRealEstateAgent
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You can check out my Zillow reviews here:
http://www.zillow.com/m/profile/Bianca-Tinsley/
Great re-blast and a very important one too, Bianca was on the $$$$...
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