Last Updated on June 19, 2022 by Kathy Rukat Smith
What is it actually like listing your home for sale???? Who shows your house, how do they gain access to your home, what are showing windows and how are you notified of showings?
Who Shows Your Home?
99% of the time, other agents will be showing your home instead of me as your listing agent. These agents are the buyers’ agent.
How Do Buyers’ Agents Access Your Home?
Buyers’ agents will access your home through an electronic lockbox. The lockbox will be attached securely to your home, most likely on your door knob. Inside the lockbox is a key to your home. Each agent will use either an app on their phone or a separate electronic key to open the lockbox. Only REALTOR members and affiliate members (think inspectors and appraisers) of the Coastal Carolinas Association of REALTORS can access the lockbox. To further protect the key in the lockbox, I can add a special code called a “call before showing” code. Anyone trying to open the lockbox will need this code in addition to the information they enter through their app or electronic device to open the lockbox.
With the electronic lockbox, I get a notification when your lockbox is accessed and when they key is put back into the lockbox. This is great because we always have a record of who entered your home and when they entered your home.
The lockbox will stay at your home until closing happens. This way, the inspector and appraiser can access the property and the buyers’ agent can access the house for their walk-through.
If you are selling a property that uses a keycard to access the property (like an ocean front condo), how the buyers’ agent accesses the property is a little different. On the day of their showing, they would get a keycard from the building’s front desk.
How Are You Notified of Showings?
Initially, I will receive a showing request from the buyers’ agent for a specific date and showing window. The showing window can be as short as 15 minutes or as long as 2 hours. The agent and buyers may not show up exactly at the start of their showing window, especially if they have a 2 hour window. However, they must arrive during that showing window or call to let us know they will be early or late. My suggestion to sellers is to leave your home 15-20 minutes before the start of the showing window and expect to come back 15-20 minutes after your showing window. This way, you do not bump into the buyers.
I will contact you to see if the date and time requested work for you. If at all possible, I suggest accepting all show requests so you get the most potential buyers seeing your home. I do understand that some showing requests may be too early in the morning or interfere with dinner or sleep and nap times if you have children at home. In those cases, we will work around your schedule and come up with a good time for everyone.
If the date and time work for you, I will notify the buyer’s agent that the showing time requested works. If something changes with the showing once it is confirmed, I will let you know.
Listing your home for sale is stressful! Knowing the ins and outs of what happens once your home is on the market and how agents gain access to show your home can hopefully relieve some stress about how the process works. To learn more about the selling process, visit the seller education videos on my YouTube Channel.