Showings May Occasionally Be A Nuisance, But Don't Do These Things
by Luke Fields
When you're trying to list houses for sale, it's likely that you'll develop a love/hate relationship with showings. Having to tidy and then vacate your home for an hour or so, often with not much notice, can be a little disruptive — but you'll have to get used to this process if you want to sell. While prospective buyers may attend open houses, they'll also want to book at least one private showing before they decide to submit an offer. How you handle showing requests can impact your ability to sell. Even if they're a little bit of a hassle, don't do these things with your showings:
Push Off The Showing Date
When your real estate agent calls to check your availability for a showing, the implication is that the prospective buyer wants to visit soon. You may deter the buyer, however, buy pushing your availability several days away. For example, if it's Monday when your agent contacts you, and you indicate that you can't have the house ready until Saturday, this is news that the buyer won't want to hear. More than likely, he or she is hoping to get in to see the house either Tuesday or Wednesday.
Fail To Tidy Up
Just as you want to tidy your home before an open house, the place should be in tidy fashion before you leave for a showing. Sometimes, a showing will be scheduled with relatively short notice, which may compel you to think, "It's short notice — the buyer will understand that the house is a mess." While an untidy house won't necessarily derail the sale, it can be a distraction to the buyer and even send a message that you aren't taking the process of selling your home seriously.
Stay At Home
Some sellers who feel inconvenienced by a scheduled showing will tell their agent that the showing can take place, but that they need to stay at home during it. This is a bad plan, even if you aren't going to interact with the buyer. Simply put, buyers don't want sellers to be present, and a buyer may feel uncomfortable as a result. This can cause the buyer to speed up the showing process and, unless he or she is greatly enamored with the house, an offer may not be forthcoming. Consult your real estate agent for other advice on managing your showings so that they help your efforts to sell your home.
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About Me
Welcome to my website. My name is Larry Silva, and I want to talk a bit about private mortgage insurance. You may have heard the term PMI mentioned when you were in the process of purchasing real estate. When I first heard my lender talking about PMI, I was very confused. It was my realtor who sat me down and explained what private mortgage insurance was and when someone is required to purchase it. He told me that PMI is not lifelong insurance; it can be cancelled when the mortgage principal balance reaches a certain point. Once it was explained to me, private mortgage insurance was no longer a mystery or a confusing concept. I would like to pass on what I learned and hope that you find it to be of value.