Open house advice

Mini87e

So my estate agent really sold the idea of having an open house and booking people in every 15 minutes.

Now I've had time to think about it, I`m having a slight meltdown. If anyone who has done this could offer some advice I'd be very grateful!

How do you keep your belongings safe? I understand don't leave anything like a purse or phone lying around but where do you put things? What's to stop someone looking in the drawers?

Also things like my wardrobe or bedside tables obviously aren't for sale but what's to stop someone going in there too? I don't really like the idea of people rummaging around my clothes.

I've also got some house cats which I don't know what to do with either while this is all happening.

G_M

If individual viewers are coming round at 15 minute intervals, presumably the estate agent (or you if you choose) will show each one round. Just like any viewing.

Why is this any more risky?

If it was a free-for all open house, with people turning up whenever they wanted, that would be different, as you could get multiple people all over the house all at the same time.

lena_halo

I!!!8217;ve just sold my shared ownership flat with meant that because it!!!8217;s SO I had to do all of the viewings myself. I!!!8217;d typically do a big clean on the Friday night and then book in 6-8 viewings for both Saturday and Sunday as we work full time. A steady stream of people through your home is not ideal but you get into it and as you or the agent are showing the people around, they are accompanied anyway. I was with all of my viewers all of the time so I never worried about anyone rifling through drawers or cupboards. As people who viewed 20 houses before we saw the one we wanted, we never once opened a drawer or looked too much at peoples things.

I really don!!!8217;t think you should worry too much about this. I preferred getting the viewings all over with!

DCFC79

They wont be going through the drawers, the agent will be there. Get some of them plastic overshoes or ask them to remove shoes when they enter so dirt isn't trodden on the carpet.

AnotherJoe

What do you do with your cats when you have guests? Do the same.

Do you open peoples draws and rifle through their clothes when looking at houses? Assuming not, why do you think others will?

lytton

If there are several viewings/families per slot there SHOULD be at least one agent there. We were told one agent on the door, one downstairs and one upstairs. I’m highly suspicious so I pointed my little canary camera inwards so I could review the footage later. The worst that happened is that our baby stair gates were forced off and some moron forced every kitchen cabinet open, breaking the magnetic child lock mechanisms on all of them. I raised this with the agents afterwards but they pleaded ignorance. I’m relatively frugal and we have surprisingly little in the way of individual items worth pinching. The tv was still there when we got back in, and we kept wallets and jewellery in my bag whilst we literally wandered round the park for an hour. If you’ve got any pocket money I would suggest getting a webcam/security cam and leaving it in a good position, perhaps hidden, if you’re really concerned. You can pick netgear ones up for pretty cheap, but there’s always a risk someone might object to being filmed if they notice the camera. It’s your house though. The most important thing is to clean up nice and proper, and leave some biscuits and flavoured water + glasses on the table for people as they tour the house. It makes a difference, people react much better to a house that is closer to a show home than a dive. When we sold our home in August we made it look nice without spending hardly a thing (already owned the webcam) and the offers came gushing through within hours. We had 9 concrete offers to consider, that was after dismissing several more with dubious finance sources. Some people insist on being in the home when it happens, but personally I’d find that weird. Let them see the ‘home’ at its very best, and try not to let it overwhelm you

glasgowdan

Open viewings WILL involve people being unattended... the agent will not be able to be everywhere at once, and there will be more than one set of viewers there at a time. The agent sometimes doesn't even do a mini tour... just says hello at the door, ticks their sheet to say who's arrived and says "on you go".

You can mull around guarding your drawers if you like, but you'll make viewers feel uncomfortable. My advice is to put as much stuff in the loft at possible. Any built in units will get their doors opened, people want to see how big they are, picture their stuff in them. You just have to accept that!

OR

Tell the agent to book individual viewings.

davidmcn

Not sure whether it reassures you any, but open viewings are pretty commonplace in Edinburgh (e.g. https://espc.com/property/41-5-royal-park-terrace-meadowbank-edinburgh-eh8-8ja/35608973?sid=518135 )
and that's just "random people ring on the bell and get let in", no appointments or names (and if the property is owner-occupied, it'll just be the owner in attendance). I'm not aware of any great worries people have about viewers rummaging through their knicker drawers.

eddddy

Mini87e wrote: »

I've also got some house cats which I don't know what to do with either while this is all happening.

I think the standard advice is to remove pets, and any trace of pets (especially litter trays!) during viewings.

Whilst some people love cats, others might be put off by the idea of living in a house previously occupied by cats.

Candyapple

I have been to about 20 open houses in my time of house hunting last year.

This has been my experience:

- Some it was just our name was ticked off a sheet and we were told to wander round ourselves
- EA started showing us round but as soon the door went, left us alone
- The door remained open and the agent let people wander in so sometimes in one room there were 10 other people
- If the owners had pets, they either remained outside in the garden (dogs) or were left to do their own thing inside or outside the house (cats). Only one house they took their dog with them but by the smell and paraphernalia, it was obvious that they had a dog
- I have seen mobile phones lying around or plugged in being charged, Apple laptops, expensive gaming systems along with games, collectors display items, handbags on the sofa or on the kitchen worktop

At no point have I ever rifled through anyone's drawers or cupboards. People are there looking for a home to buy, not to perv on your underwear or steal your jewellery. If you are that bothered, put all your expensive items in your handbag and take it with you for when you go out on the day.

At most, in a fitted kitchen I have opened a cupboard for a cursory glance to check what appliances were inside to see what the kitchen could hold.

If you are having a meltdown over something so minor, then perhaps you should just stick to individual appointments only.

hazyjo

Mini87e wrote: »

I've also got some house cats which I don't know what to do with either while this is all happening.

Leave them in their baskets outside, or sit out there with them and hope it doesn't rain! Or take them for a drive in the car if you have one and if they travel okay. As above - lose all trace of them, especially litter trays and give the house a very good airing before anyone comes round. (I have two myself and while I don't think kitties smell, it's never nice to have the trays out with any guests, let alone house viewers!)


If you have fitted furniture, they may well look in drawers. Check every drawer yourself and either put a pillow case or towel across the top of the contents if personal, or just empty the drawer and store elsewhere temporarily.