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I'm not too picky, especially since I put away significant things. The mud on carpets is something that would take time and expense to address. For that I like Eletrician4you's idea.
I think the shoe booties are a great idea, along with a small stool or something to sit on in case someone needs a place to sit while putting them on.
Otherwise, I think expecting people to just hold it in a rural area is a bit much. It’s one thing in an urban/suburban area where there is likely a grocery store, Target, CVS/Walgreens just around the corner with a toilet, but in a rural area those can be a 15-45 minute drive. As for the washing machine, my mom just leaves tape on hers, which makes it easy for people to know it is to be left open. A lot of times if you just leave them ajar, they swing open or people bump them and it is hard to get by. When I did my showings, I just left them closed as they are typically not in areas that have a lot of room.
You can always leave a note or sticky on the thermostat about the desired temperature in case someone wants to check it out. I was selling mine during the summer and not living there, so it was set fairly high but of course people are going to want to see if it cools down a bit. No one wants to be inconsiderate and leave it up when they remember it was cooler when they came in.
Okay, a nights sleep and I'm still irritated (personality, I'm a private person and dread this sale process as it's a non-stop invasion of that privacy by people who just don't care about someone elses stuff). Apparently, most of you don't really care about your own stuff, so it'd make sense that you wouldn't care for someone elses.
For reference, I do have a bench at the door (100 y/o church pew), no booties though. That's a good idea, but will the people that can't be bothered to remove shoes bother with them? Plenty of seating throughout the house that wouldn't show signs of use, heck the living room wouldn't/don't show signs of use when you sit like an adult (not flopping around like a fish out of water).
The toilet thing? No. I've done all-day looking and when I needed a break, I said so (usually driven by the agent) and we pull into a business.
But, apparently I'm alone here. Leave no trace... it's a concept used for people who go outdoors to keep from littering, but I apply it everywhere. No one should ever be able to tell I was there. Flows back to the Golden Rule, treating others how I wish to be treated... with some respect towards that fact that it's their Home. Not just some house to buy.
Any mods watching this? Since my question is thoroughly answered and the dead horse has been beaten into a puddle of mud, can this be locked?
The thing with locking a thread that doesn't insult or cause harm, 3 years from now someone may offer the perfect solution even if you have moved on and dealing with a new problem. These threads are invaluable research for someone with similar issues. It will quickly drop to the bottom and resurface with research. Every reply I make is remembering the consumer in the future.
The impression I am getting is most think your rural market equals minimal showings. You can certainly add rules to buyers, but why would you take the chance to limit your buyer pool?
My feathers are a bit ruffled, so this may come off a bit rantish. If so, just bear with me...
So, just listed my house (to which I have as much, or more, personal attachment as anyone does since I spent 8 months of 40 hour work-weeks restoring the property) and have had 2 showings in the ~10 days since listing. That's good. We're in a small rural area, my agent holds the key ~ no lock boxes and scheduled appointments in other words, and the one request we have is no shoes in the house. Not outlandish IMHO, pretty common for this area to take off shoes when entering homes (and there's a bench with shoe tray right at the front door). One last bit of maybe pertinent info, our house is perpetually "show ready", about all that's needed is to straighten the couch and lock up jewelry.
So the first showing I'm sure they removed shoes as it was raining. But several things in the house were amiss upon return. Door to our washing machine was closed (front-load, it's left open to mitigate mold), living room furniture was mussed up (pillows and blankets amiss) and our thermostat was turned way down (was set on 63 at the time of showing, 55 when I came back).
Second showing they clearly did NOT remove shoes as there was trash (leaf debris, mulch, dirt/grit) all over the floors and they used the bathroom.
This isn't my first rodeo, I've sold 3 other homes in the past decade and I don't recall dealing with this despite the same no shoes request each time. I also recognize that personal accountability has taken a Serious nose-dive in that same time, but do you real estate agents just let this kind of stuff slide? In what world is it acceptable to use the toilet in someone's home when you're viewing it for sale? And if you're going to, why not cover your tracks and return it to the state in which you found it (in our case, the toilet set was down when we left and up when we returned ~ simple).
Or am I just being too picky?
When I was selling a house in 2009, not only did we have people who opened desk and dresser drawers to rifle through them (this was free-standing furniture, so not subject to being opened as a closet or built-in would be), people also stood in our tubs/showers, laid on our beds, and used the toilets without flushing. When I sold a house in 2014, the front and back doors would routinely be left unlocked after a showing, which was fully the showing agent's responsibility. We provided booties, but did not require that people take off their shoes. We simply accepted that we'd need to vacuum/polish the floors more frequently during the home-selling process.
I didn't mind the toilet usage as sometimes a person just has to go (especially if one is pregnant), but to not flush the toilet after using it is beyond my comprehension--especially in someone else's home and with a number two, no less. Also, the same non-flushers came to see the house at least three times and did this on all three visits. My husband and I used to joke that they were "marking their territory." (This particular couple did end up buying the house, so perhaps there was some truth to our inside joke.)
Last edited by Formerly Known As Twenty; 11-21-2018 at 07:24 AM..
I'm a buyer. From my perspective, sellers need to emotionally detach once they put a house on the market.
Emotional detachment is one thing--I've been there, done that, and have several tee shirts to show for it.
That being said, having a house on the market it doesn't give potential buyers the right to abuse or mark the home as sadly, there is no "you break it, you buy it" policy when it comes to houses. It's still legally the current owner's house, so they are ultimately responsible for any damages or, if someone is not watching their children, accidental injuries because the children were allowed to roam without proper supervision. A good showing agent can gently guide their clients into behaving properly during a showing.
Any time that I've been through the process as a buyer, I've tried to leave the house exactly as I found it, taken off my shoes (especially if it's muddy outside, the floors are dark hardwood, or there is obviously new or lighter colored carpets). I don't open or touch free-standing furniture or dig through the things of strangers.
Okay, a nights sleep and I'm still irritated (personality, I'm a private person and dread this sale process as it's a non-stop invasion of that privacy by people who just don't care about someone elses stuff). Apparently, most of you don't really care about your own stuff, so it'd make sense that you wouldn't care for someone elses.
So you asked opinions, got opinions, and now everyone else is wrong...got it.
Grow up, it's a business transaction not a romantic relationship - get your feelings out of it. Either you want to sell or you don't.
I'm a buyer, I'm not taking my shoes off when I enter someone's house. I have no idea of the condition of your floors or the cleanliness of your carpets and therefore my shoes remain on. I do not know your maintenance habits, there could be a carpet tack sticking up. You could have loose floorboards. You could have any number of contaminants in your carpeting. Quite frankly that's a disgusting "rule" you have and my feet will not touch a strangers floor. People really don't give a damn what your petty annoyances are, they're there to buy a house not to impress you.
Nothing in your original post is outside of the ordinary of someone looking at a house. If the W/D come with the house, then yeah people are going to open the doors. Thermostat - someone was checking to see if the heat/AC clicked on or off. In any event, the potential buyer is looking at an entire house and most likely simply forgot to reset the thermostat.
If you're so "private" and this invasion of privacy (drama much?) is truly bothering you, you're the ideal candidate for one of those "cash for your home" type offers.
OP, you insult us by saying we don't care about our stuff?
What part of the selling process do you not understand? If you want to sell your house, people will have to visit. Once you put it on the market, you have to begin to stop seeing it as your house. It's someone else's house and you are in your final days living there. Heck, see it as a rental with the lease ending soon.
While showing, remove valuables and anything else you are sensitive about. Do the shoe booties if you must. FYI, many people wear shoes inside and it is fairly common to do so. I would rather strangers wear shoes than walk around in bare feet or sweaty, foot fungus laden socks. Put a $2 mat on the outside and inside of the front door.
Your big take away is you should stop being so sensitive. It's no longer your house. You need to identify your next house so you can put your emotional attachments in the new house.
Apparently, most of you don't really care about your own stuff, so it'd make sense that you wouldn't care for someone elses.
You've just shown your hand. This is a really childish response to people who were giving you candid feedback.
Yes, you are being too picky. These aren't guests. They're customers. You want to sell your house, and there have been posters on here before who wanted to instill extreme measures (like credit checks etc) to keep the riff-raff (i.e. normal people) from touring their home during showings. And folks here cautioned that they would severely limit their buying pool if they didn't check their ego.
You're already in a limited buying pool. I can't think of anyone who enjoys the showing process. I've come home to see that buyers obviously pulled out toys from closet shelves and given them to their kids to play with. I've come home to Pla-Doh ground into carpet, a toilet with pee still in it and a broken stove knob.
It sounds like you've done as much as you can to mitigate damage. The best you can do is grit your teeth and get through it.
I am one of those people who HATES intrusions by strangers, but even I think some of your ideas are on the far side of ridiculous.
I can see expecting people to take off their shoes since you specified this with your realtor. And I agree that they should have left the thermostat alone - if something were wrong with it, the inspection would show it later, so no need to test it. The dryer door is inconsequential - you can open it again.
As far as sitting on the sofa, it's no big deal. Maybe they were having a discussion about the house with the realtor while they were in the house. Not everyone can stand for long periods of time. I have sciatica and I can't stand in one place for too long.
As far as not using the bathroom, I think you are absolutely demented on that subject. What makes you think that just because you can hold it long enough to go elsewhere, that everyone else's body works just like yours? There are all kinds of medical conditions that take away control or cause frequent urination.
If I were told I couldn't use the bathroom, I might be offended enough not to even buy the house!
Not sure why you even care, unless they left your bathroom dirty.
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When I sold a house in 2014, the front and back doors would routinely be left unlocked after a showing, which was fully the showing agent's responsibility. We provided booties, but did not require that people take off their shoes. We simply accepted that we'd need to vacuum/polish the floors more frequently during the home-selling process. 
and a broken stove knob. 
