Should Homeowners be Present During Showings?

Should Homeowners be Present During Showings?

If you are a homeowner thinking about selling your home, my advice is to first find a local REALTOR® you feel comfortable with. Someone who knows the area as well as the real estate market and honest with you.

As a seller, your goal is to get your home sold for the most money in the shortest time. To achieve this, it’s important to make sure;



-your home is priced right
-shows well
-marketed well
-available to show

For the purpose of this post, let’s elaborate on “Available to show”.

There should not be any showing instructions. Selling a home while it’s occupied is not an easy task but it will be for only a while until your home is under contract, until then, you have to do everything possible to make your home available to potential buyers. Remember, if your home can not be shown, it won’t sell.
What does that mean?

-Don’t have any day or time restrictions
-Have your home show ready at all times
-Allow your agent to put a lock box on the door
-Do not demand your listing agent to be present during showings
-Leave your home for every showing

Buyers want to freely walk around your home to see if it will be a right fit for them. If you’re following them around, they will be out the door faster than you can squeeze in a few comments.
Leaving your home during showings means just that. Walking out the door and going somewhere away from it, it's not just sitting in the living room and watching TV, not sitting by the pool.
Buyers want the freedom to be able to talk freely with their agent, if you’re hovering around, they can not possibly do that. I understand the fact sellers get excited and feel that buyers may miss a few things without the homeowner present. Fear not! They have a competent agent who can address those concerns with your agent.

Some agents demand to be present for every showing which can backfire. As a seller, you should truly question this practice. What benefit would that have? Is it a practice they have or are they doing it for your benefit?

When representing buyers, they often ask if the homeowners would be home prior to entering, if the answer is yes, they show very little enthusiasm and ready to go for a quick tour and be out the door and on their way to the next home, hopefully, the one without the homeowner present.

If you are a homeowner thinking about selling your home, my advice to you is to remove all emotions out of the way and look at it as a business transaction. Your home is the product and you must do your best to attract potential buyers, the faster you can do this, sooner you will be packing up and on your way to the closing table.

Should Homeowners be Present During Showings?

 

 

Beth Atalay, Broker/Owner Cam Realty and Property Management 407-929-1852 Wheretoliveinorlando.com BethAtalay@Gmail.com Your Orlando Agent - Where to Live in Orlando