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I have to laugh at the Fairbanks comment. Being that I am in Alaska, right now if I said no after dark I could have showings at all hours by June. As it is it is just dusk outside and it is 10:45pm.
Tonight I had a showing scheduled for 7:15-8:15. It wasn't easy to get ready for it after work while my kids did homework and dinner had to be put off until later. My only issue was that when we came back at 8:20, they were still there. We drove to a gas station and killed time, came back at 8:35 they were still there. My husband started to get upset and I simply said that it was better than them walking in and walking out. Granted, I don't know what time they really arrived, so maybe it won't generate anything. However, I had traffic in the door. It was an inconvienence, but then again I am selling my home, what should I expect?
Now sometimes you may just have to say no, but in reality you should be preparing to give as many yes answers as possible. If you don't, the other homes out there will be. I remember shopping for a home. I requested to see one and I couldn't but then went to see others and found two I liked, I then wasn't as interested. The realtor asked me if I still wanted to see the first house. I passed, I was already deciding between two that I really liked. I bought one of those. Who knows what I missed. However, at that point I wasn't sure I wanted to negotiate with someone who didn't even have the time to let me see what they wanted to sell.
As what you would want a seller to do if you were the buyer. That should help you define when you allow showings.
I think the last time we sold there was a 24 hour notice, but with a note they could call us to check if it was less than that. I remember plenty of appointments where we said yes with less than that. Didn't really matter during the day since we both worked. Was the house always spotless? Nope.
The only time I remember not leaving was when we were having a party for my daughter and had a house full of guests. I told them they could come on in if they wanted, but they were mad we wouldn't clear out the entire party on 5 minutes notice.
I sold last year in one of those really hot markets. We got the house all ready to go and went on vacation for the first week of showing. Came back in time to accept offers. In those markets with 6 groups looking the first day, it's best to turn the house over to your realtor and relax.
Then, as a serious buyer in a buyers market I didn't expect 15 minutes notice. I expected my realtor to make the appointments the evening before. When he picked us up he had a schedule. If I found other houses, from driving by or on the Internet, I forwarded the address to him and he could add it to the next days appointments. So maybe not 24 hours, but definitely 12 hours notice.
You can say you want only qualified buyers to buy. Not those who think they can or who forgot to mention a bankruptcy or two but those who have been qualified. If brokers haven't qualified the buyers, as they do in some areas, or the buyers haven't gotten a prequalification letter on how much they can afford I don't know why realtors spend much time with them. A friend got her home ready quickly one afternoon and took her two year old and sleepy baby onto the porch during the showing. She heard the realtor say as they walked around inside that she knew the buyer wouldn't really buy this house but she thought it was so well decorated that it would give her good ideas about decorating.
This friend called the broker/owner of the company needless to say and told him she would not accept any more showings from his company.
Realize also that when many agents schedule a showing between, say, 7 and 8 they mean arrival time between 7 and 8. So you can set all the parameters you want. You can go on a case by case basis. You can act like you're scheduling any business appointment. Ask when they will arrive, realizing as the day goes on they get more and more off schedule. And let them know what time they will leave. You can nicely say, okay, I'm putting you down for 7 so I will be home at 7:30. You can ask is this a first run through or coming back for a second longer look? etc etc.
I have known people who offered showings lots of times but also had strict times when there were no showings, including nap times for the kids.
I personally would try for as few boundaries as possible given whatever situation I was in at the moment during the first two weeks.
An alternative might also be to offer one or two weekdays for brokers to bring their qualified customers all day while you're at work and school. Or perhaps dedicate more open house time, such as extended hours Sat and Sun. I'd personally do this for qualified buyers and their brokers again. You can plan to be away those days so that you're not frustrated with organizing showings. I believe there's a statistic that open houses are more for the broker holding them to get more customers.
We didn't turn down any showings when we were trying to sell 3 years ago. And that's with 3 kids and a DH working at home. I can't remember anyone calling and saying "we're coming in 30 minutes" ....glad it sold in 2 weeks, LOL.
You can say you want only qualified buyers to buy. Not those who think they can or who forgot to mention a bankruptcy or two but those who have been qualified. If brokers haven't qualified the buyers, as they do in some areas, or the buyers haven't gotten a prequalification letter on how much they can afford I don't know why realtors spend much time with them. A friend got her home ready quickly one afternoon and took her two year old and sleepy baby onto the porch during the showing. She heard the realtor say as they walked around inside that she knew the buyer wouldn't really buy this house but she thought it was so well decorated that it would give her good ideas about decorating.
This friend called the broker/owner of the company needless to say and told him she would not accept any more showings from his company.
Realize also that when many agents schedule a showing between, say, 7 and 8 they mean arrival time between 7 and 8. So you can set all the parameters you want. You can go on a case by case basis. You can act like you're scheduling any business appointment. Ask when they will arrive, realizing as the day goes on they get more and more off schedule. And let them know what time they will leave. You can nicely say, okay, I'm putting you down for 7 so I will be home at 7:30. You can ask is this a first run through or coming back for a second longer look? etc etc.
I have known people who offered showings lots of times but also had strict times when there were no showings, including nap times for the kids.
I personally would try for as few boundaries as possible given whatever situation I was in at the moment during the first two weeks.
An alternative might also be to offer one or two weekdays for brokers to bring their qualified customers all day while you're at work and school. Or perhaps dedicate more open house time, such as extended hours Sat and Sun. I'd personally do this for qualified buyers and their brokers again. You can plan to be away those days so that you're not frustrated with organizing showings. I believe there's a statistic that open houses are more for the broker holding them to get more customers.
Edit: That should have read "qualified buyers to look"
I understand some people giving restrictions...nap times out ( although I know some homeowners who would say you can knock quietly and I'll wait by the door but don't ring the bell and you can't go in the nursery); give us an hour to run home and take the dogs away; we have big dogs so only evenings and weekends; occupants who are ill or slow moving for various reasons.
Other than real issues there's no need to give a specific time limit just to give a time limit. If you're ready, you're ready. If you're in the shower, you're in the shower. But give another time pleasantly. Know in your head how many minutes it'll take you to dry, dress, and scoot out to Starbucks with the dog in the car. And, other times, how long it will take you to dry, dress, set your hair,feed and walk the dog and put him in the basement with the do not open sign on the door...before you leave for work. Often realtors are happy to put your house further down on the time schedule as long as they get to show it.
There is a bit of flight or fight going on all this time...things more at the ready so that you can have a showing and sell your home but that can all be part of doing any job well.
I have never turned down a showing but find that people treat this like a fun game. Many waste their time and mine not reading about the property. It's fine at first but after a couple of months of it, it's annoying. You can't do a thing about it, since you never know who could be the potential buyer.
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