Selling Your House? Use These Top Safety Tips!

• November 13, 2014
• by Carlos Lopez

Selling a house is an exciting moment. However, opening your home to potential buyers might also give way to potential dangers. Here are our top five safety tips when selling your home or showing it for rent.

1. Schedule Meetings, Not Open Houses

If you are selling your home on your own, the safest way to showcase your home is with individual meetings. Open houses can give thieves an opportunity to steal if you become distracted by too many visitors. Instead, have potential buyers make an appointment in advance to see your home. This will give you an opportunity to screen individuals as well, and request their names and phone numbers to verify their identity before a meeting.

2. Depersonalize Your Home

While hiding expensive items like jewelry from plain sight, remove photos, personal affects and items that hold any of your personal information, such as mail. Not only does it help sell your home but it provides scammers less opportunity to see any information about you and your family that they may be able to use.

3. Identify Visitors

Make sure the people who arrive are who they claim they are by requesting photo identification from the beginning. Keep an accurate track of who visits and collect as much information as you can about them. Jot down notes about their appearance as well, and trust your instincts when it comes to making judgments about visitors.

4. Inform Your Security Alarm Provider

Let your security provider know that you are moving and learn about your options for transferring your alarm system and service to your new home. If you have an agent showing your home, you can also check with your home security provider about setting up a secondary alarm code for your system. This key code can track entry and exit times, and will not jeopardize your main security code.

5. Never Show Your Home Alone

Always use a buddy system when you decide to show your home to potential buyers. Have a neighbor, friend, spouse or family member around as it will keep a malicious individual from easily taking advantage of the situation. Also, inform your neighbors about your home tours. Let them know when you will be giving tours, as they will be able to keep an eye out for you during that time as well. With these five strategies in mind, you can stay safe from any common threats or scams homeowners face when selling their home. For more ways to stay safe, contact us.

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