Being a Realtor can be a dangerous profession. Nowadays, you often interact with customers online or via phone. You may frequently meet customers for the first time at a property. Do you truly know who your customers are? It is important to always keep safety in mind. Here are a few tips that may help.
Wait Until Your Customer Arrives Before Unlocking a Home
When meeting new home buyers, your inclination may be to unlock the home and turn on all of the lights before they arrive. It may be best to avoid doing this. When you first meet a customer, you will get certain vibes from them. If something doesn’t seem right or if you are uncomfortable with them, you really should not enter that home alone. If you haven’t already unlocked the door, you can pretend that there is an issue with the lockbox by intentionally entering the wrong code.
Don’t Enter a Vacant Home Alone
It is never a good idea to enter a vacant home alone. If you arrive before your customer does, wait outside rather than inside. If someone else is in the home (i.e. a squatter), you do not want to encounter that person alone. There is safety in numbers, so wait for your customer to accompany you.
Always Walk Behind Your Customers
Rather than walking ahead of your customer, extend an arm and invite them into each room first. This will help prevent you from being attacked from behind. Being the one in the rear/outside gives you better visibility and a quicker exit.
Always Have a Safety Contact
Before meeting any customer, make sure a colleague or family member knows exactly where you will be and who you will be with. Tell your safety contact what time you expect to be done with your appointment and can check in with them. If you have only interacted with your customer online or via phone, they may have given you a false identity. As you see your customer pull up to the property, quickly text their license plate number to your safety contact.
Showing Safety Tips for NH Realtors
The above showing safety tips for NH Realtors may seem extreme to some, but given the news of Realtors being attacked, kidnapped, and even murdered at showings, you must take your safety seriously. There is no such thing as being too safe. With any customer interactions, follow your instincts and always proceed with caution.