The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) and the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) have worked hard to keep REALTOR® Safety foremost in the minds of their members and for their members to share with clients. REALTORS® realize that sellers, too, face some dangers in allowing strangers into their homes or visiting other people's properties.
Here is some valuable advice to protect sellers against crime:
• Remember that strangers will be walking through your home during showings or open houses. Make sure you hide any valuables in a safe place. For security's sake, remember to remove keys, credit cards, jewelry, crystal, furs and other valuables from the home or lock them away during showings. Also remove prescription drugs. Some seemingly honest people wouldn't mind getting their hands on a bottle of Viagra, uppers or downers.
• DON'T leave personal information like mail or bills out in the open where anyone can see it. Be sure to lock down your computer and lock up your laptop and put away any other expensive, easy-to-pocket electronics, like iPods, before your showing.
• Do not to show your home by yourself. Not all agents, buyers and sellers are who they say they are. Predators come in all shapes and sizes. We tell our children not to talk to strangers. Do not to talk to other agents or buyers. Refer all inquiries to your agent.
• Sellers are responsible for their pets. If possible, animals should be removed during showings. Buyers and agents are sometimes attacked, and the owner will be held liable.
• At an open house, be alert to the pattern of visitors' arrivals, especially near the end of showing hours. In some areas, a group of thieves will show up together near the end of the open house and, while a string of "potential buyers" distracts the agent or seller, the rest of the group walks through the house, stealing any valuables they come across.
• Finally, when your agent leaves your property, whether after an open house or a standard showing, your agent should make sure that all doors and windows are locked. Thieves commonly use open houses to scout for valuables and possible points of entry, then they return after the agent leaves.
• While your agent will take all of the above safety precautions, when you return home, it is always best to immediately verify that all doors are locked and all valuables accounted for.
This article is part of the National Association of REALTORS®' REALTOR® Safety Resources Kit. Visit NAR's REALTOR® Safety website at www.REALTOR®.org/Safety
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 4,000 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.
Variations of this article have appeared in local area newspapers.
For further information, please email or call the SILVAR office at (408) 200-0100.