Showing with Courtesy
Anytime a homeowner puts their home on the market, they are normally given a stern warning by the Listing Agent of their home that they need to have their home in Model Home condition at a moment's notice for a potential buyer showing; clean the Kitchen, make the beds, vacuum the carpet, pick up the clothes, etc. I've actually called many sellers and you can hear the panic in their voices. I try to give as much notice as I can and most of the time I call the night before the showing to schedule. Unfortunately, this is not always possible, things change, and you can't always predict when you will be showing a home in advance. That's just how life works.
When you have a buyer looking in a couple of different areas, you don't know what time you will arrive at a home for a showing. Many agent schedule a big block of time when they call the seller to schedule a showing; 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm. That's five hours of shopping, sitting in the car, going out to eat, etc. It use to be that a seller could tell when the house was shown due to the agent leaving their business card to show they had been at the house. Now, with the lockboxes notifiying the agents that the house has been shown, many agents no longer feel the need to leave a card.
I now have a policy of scheduling a big block of time like the rest of the agents, but I tell the seller that I will call when they are the next home on the list. This gives the seller the heads up that I should be there within 15 to 20 minutes. If I'm showing in another part of town, I tell them it will be about 30 minutes before I arrive. When the seller has a dog or young children, this courtesy to the seller is always appreciated.
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