by Sean Hess (www.SeanHess.com), Broker and Manager for St. Augustine Team Realty (www.StAugustineTeamRealty.com). Follow us on Facebook.
So your home got showed, then it got trashed. Okay, not really trashed, but someone left a door open, or the lights on…they trashed common courtesy in other words.
Here’s some agent stories I found on the web recently:
“I had a listing once and a buyer’s agent left the side door of the house open and my client’s cat escaped. She found the cat, but I lost the listing and I don’t blame the client for canceling our contract. I’m lucky that her house wasn’t robbed. I contacted the buyer’s agent to let them know how displeased I was, but unfortunately didn’t get much remorse.”
“Recently after I returned to my condo after a viewing I found a large coffee stain on my white carpet. Either the agent or the people viewing the house spilled coffee on the carpet and did not bother to even clean it up. Now I have to get my carpets cleaned…”
In a regular year we might see one door left open (this year I’ve seen three…a fourth turned out to be a faulty lock), and we might see one lockbox left open (we’ve seen four since December of last year). But for the grace of God we haven’t seen any coffee stains or damage.
What is a seller or their agent to do?
Unfortunately not much.
The real estate business is built on networking. The agent that leaves your door open today may sell your listing tomorrow. Most agents alive today have to be good or they wouldn’t still be in business, so protecting the sale is more important than unloading on someone for leaving a door open.
And in most cases it’s unintentional anyway.
We know who the agents are showing our listings. Usually when something happens I’ll call them and just let them know a door got left open, or a lockbox wasn’t closed…they are usually mortified. These are professionals after all. They were usually distracted by their buyers, answering questions, trying to make sure all the lights were turned off, etc.
Agents so cavalier and so bad that they do this routinely find themselves fired out of the business, and fast.
And look, if someone I knew left my own door open I wouldn’t unload on them. In fact, someone I know (myself) closed the office last week, turned on the alarm, and forgot to lock the door…if I can do that to my own property I’m certainly capable of doing it at someone else’s.
So, yes it’s bad form, and it trashes common courtesy. But it’s not intentional, and you’re trying to sell your house, right? So, be thankful for the buyer chance and let it roll.
