You are currently browsing the tag archive for the ‘open houses’ tag.
Every day REALTORS® across the nation put themselves in positions where they can be victims of dangerous crimes. Whether it’s putting up signs along the highway, meeting a new client, or showing a house to a prospective buyer, your personal safety is often at stake. To raise awareness about this important issue, the month of September is officially designated by the National Association of REALTORS® as REALTOR® Safety Month.
“The safety of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®’ 5,000 members is a top priority. An open house can be a great sales tool, but it also exposes you to numerous unfamiliar people for the first time. Thieves and assailants have been known to prey on open houses. We always caution our members to be watchful of suspicious behavior when hosting an open house,” said Brett Caviness, president of SILVAR.
Take these steps to stay safe at open houses:
- If possible, always try to have at least one other person working with you at an open house.
- Check your cell phone’s strength and signal prior to the open house. Have emergency numbers programmed on speed dial.
- Upon entering a house for the first time, check all rooms and determine several “escape” routes. Make sure all deadbolt locks are unlocked to facilitate a faster escape.
- Make sure that if you were to escape by the back door, you could escape from the backyard. Frequently, high fences surround yards that contain swimming pools or hot tubs.
- Have all open house visitors sign in. Ask for full name, address, phone number and email.
- When showing the house, always walk behind the prospect. Direct them; don’t lead them. Say for example, “The kitchen is on your left,” and gesture for them to go ahead of you.
- Avoid attics, basements, and getting trapped in small rooms.
- Notify someone in your office, your answering service, a friend or a relative that you will be calling in every hour on the hour. And if you don’t call, they are to call you.
- Inform a neighbor that you will be showing the house and ask if he or she would keep an eye and ear open for anything out of the ordinary.
- Don’t assume that everyone has left the premises at the end of an open house. Check all of the rooms and the backyard prior to locking the doors. Be prepared to defend yourself, if necessary.
For more information on REALTOR® and consumer safety, visit www.realtor.org/safety.
Since the California Department of Public Health updated its guidance on open houses, the California Association of REALTORS® announced changes to open house protocols and has created new forms and a Quick Guide to help REALTOR® members:
Forms: C.A.R. has simplified and shortened the Rules of Entry (PRE) and Preventive Plan (BPPP) and created the PSI sign-in form as an alternative to PEADS. There also is an addendum to the listing agreement LOHA reflecting the changed protocols. This form is necessary if the parties had previously signed the RLA-CAA, which did not allow for open houses. The RLA-CAA was revised to reflect the new guidance, including open houses. New listings should continue to utilize this addendum to reflect the current issues.
PEADS: The PEADS have been combined and simplified into one shorter PEAD-ALL that is available if members prefer to use them instead of on-site sign-in protocols.
See the new Quick Guide for more details.
The newly revised forms PRE, BPPP, PEAD and RLA-CAA, as well as the new Property Sign-in form PSI and the new Listing Addendum LOHA, are available on zipForm. The PDFs of each of these forms are also available HERE.
C.A.R. anticipates further announcements impacting real estate showings of all kinds and will communicate any relevant changes as quickly as possible. While San Mateo and Santa Clara counties are following the state’s updated guidelines, please remember to adhere to local guidelines that may be stricter in other areas.
With coronavirus cases dropping and more Californians vaccinated, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has amended industry guidance for real estate to allow in-person showings and open houses. Showings must be in accordance with state restrictions on public gatherings and follow face coverings and contact tracing protocols. Anyone with symptoms of COVID-19 must not attend and physical distancing between households must be maintained. Hand sanitizer and other cleaning protocols must also be followed.
All other restrictions in the state real estate guidance are still currently in place, as well as workplace protocols showing employees and customers that a risk reduction plan is in place. The California Association of REALTORS® will be releasing additional guidance in the coming days and working with CDPH to clarify remaining questions.
Currently, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties are following state protocols. If any additional restrictions are announced locally, SILVAR will provide updates.
See the following updates:
California Department of Public Health Industry Guidance
Real Estate Industry Required Checklist
C.A.R. UPDATE: CA Public Health Dept. Allows Open Houses
California Governor Gavin Newsom has extended the state stay-at-home order through the end of May and has California’s Pandemic Roadmap to safely re-open all businesses and institutions stages. Meanwhile, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, along with the four other Bay Area counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, have announced they will ease some of their Shelter-in-Place (SIP) restrictions effective Monday, May 4. With regard to the practice of real estate, the Santa Clara County Public Health Order states (SILVAR has confirmed that the same applies to San Mateo County):
“Service providers that enable real estate transactions (including rentals, leases, and home sales), including, but not limited to, real estate agents, escrow agents, notaries, and title companies, provided that appointments and other real estate viewings must only occur virtually or, if a virtual viewing is not feasible, by appointment with no more than two visitors at a time residing within the same household or living unit and one individual showing the unit (except that in-person visits are not allowed when an occupant is present in a residence);“
Previously, private showings and walk-throughs were not allowed when an occupant was living in the residence. This mirrors prior direction for limited photography/videography, inspections, and necessary work to close a transaction, while generally limiting it to no more than three people at a property at one time.
The following guidance for showings of properties continue:
- No open houses.
- Virtual showings are highly encouraged. If a virtual viewing is not feasible, then an in-person viewing of the property may be done by appointment only.
- During the in-person showing of the property, all social distancing protocols must be practiced, and protective measures, such as the wearing of gloves, cloth face coverings, and not touching of surfaces and maintaining a distance of six feet between each other must be followed.
For more information on this announcement, visit the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® website at http://www.silvar.org.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® says ... 