Concerns about viewings

Retired_Mortgage_Adviser

NibblyPig said:

I don't have a house full of safes and I have a lot of stuff that could be nicked, e.g. echo dots, cameras, computer equipment, power banks, phones etc. I will see if I can bag it up and stash it so nothing can be grabbed without rummaging around. My house has very little storage, there is no loft or spare cupboard I can chuck stuff in, otherwise I'd hide it all away!

Most people don't have a house full of safes

I would just take the biggest suitcase I have, chuck everything in there, lock it with a padlock and shove it under the bed. Hopefully the EA will notice if the viewers walk out of your home dragging a large suitcase behind them!

If you're still worried, when you clear out, take the suitcase with you.

AdrianC

NibblyPig said:

It's not really possible to lock everything away, I don't have a house full of safes and I have a lot of stuff that could be nicked, e.g. echo dots, cameras, computer equipment, power banks, phones etc.
I will see if I can bag it up and stash it so nothing can be grabbed without rummaging around. My house has very little storage, there is no loft or spare cupboard I can chuck stuff in, otherwise I'd hide it all away!

So it's all just left out, clearly visible, 24x7? You don't have any drawers you can tuck the small stuff into?

Sounds like your biggest viewings challenge there is going to be simply decluttering! Putative buyers see stuff out everywhere, they're going to go "No storage. Sounds expensive. Next."

Get down the Swedish embassy, and look at their storage options... <£50, everything tucked away, job jobbed.

scottishblondie

I'd just stash all the small stuff where they'd really have to rummage to find it.  TBH all the small things/clutter should be away anyway to give the best impression of the property.  When we sold I conducted all the viewings.  I'd take them around, then leave them to have a look alone while I waited in the kitchen.  I'd have heard them rummaging around so I wasn't too worried.  I'm 95% percent certain that someone did, however, open a display cabinet (not locked) and nick a Swarovski crystal animal, as it was no longer on the shelf when I came to pack them all in their boxes for moving.  There's just no accounting for some people.

phoebe1989seb

We've sold several houses and have done a mix of estate agent conducted viewings and those we did ourselves. Personally I prefer to do the viewings myself and would rather be shown a property by the vendor too, as I feel they are usually way more knowledgeable about the property than most EAs. A compromise is definitely to let the EA do first viewings with the vendor doing any second views.

I should point out that we are maximalists, lol, and that even when decluttered our properties tend to be more full than most  We also have lots of antiques/valuables but have never removed anything other than jewellery from view prior to a viewing. I guess that anyone intent on pinching stuff isn't going to want an art nouveau vase worth a few hundred £££! They certainly couldn't exactly walk out with a £4k antique sideboard 

Electronic items are different - small things that are easily pocketed and disposed of are tempting to some I guess - but I really can't imagine burglars targeting properties for sale and rocking up for a viewing with a swag bag!

Leaving all that kind of stuff out does imply a lack of storage though, so for avoidance of doubt I'd definitely be looking to pack it all away whilst the property is being sold.

Thinking about it, the only thing that we ever had go missing when we were selling a house in 2011 was one of our cats. The EA doing the viewing had been warned they were house cats and to keep them in a room with no open windows. Of course he - or the family viewing - somehow managed to let her into a room where there was a window open and she climbed down the roof. Fortunately she was still in our garden when we arrived back after the viewing......

Splatfoot

I must be weird, it's never even crossed my mind!  

PasturesNew

It'd be normal to get the house in order before a viewing, which could mean you dashing round and grabbing anything precious/sentimental and locking it into a locking suitcase under the bed, or in the wardrobe.  Just one of the "routine things you do before a viewing".  I used to move things about for every viewing, clear things, put things in a particular way, hide a few things that were unsightly.  

You need ONE spot that's regular to put everything... one day, in a hurry, I hid my slippers somewhere new ... didn't see them again for 2 months, I just remembered I'd found a new/nifty spot for them.

kdotdotdotdot

When I was viewing houses, I certainly opened cupboards in the kitchen and any built-in storage or airing cupboards, to get an idea of how much space was in them.  The EA was with me all the time (but maybe because I was viewing alone).  If you're stashing items away, put them in a drawer or somewhere that a prospective buyer would have no cause to open - the idea of a padlocked suitcase is good.  

tealady

If you have a car lock them in the boot.
Other than that ask a friend or neighbour to store stuff.

Rural_Puppy

My car was always packed on viewing days! Favourite place to stash the laundry basket!

NibblyPig

Suitcase is a great idea, as is my car. The house is completely decluttered (Thanks Marie Kondo!), but storage is very limited. If you open any drawer you'll find one full of phones and chargers, another full of camera equipment, another full of video equipment, another full of computer gadgetry, another full of tools, and so on. Fortunately I've managed to make it look quite spartan and orderly to the casual viewer :-) 

One of the reasons for moving is that I really need a loft space, or spare storage cupboard, to just put stuff in. Even with my decluttered house I have a pile of stuff that has nowhere to go. For example I have a large dehumidifier, heaters, stepladders, clothes horse etc. and they sit on the landing looking a bit messy. They'd be perfect for under the stairs type storage but under my stairs is my fridge because the place has a tiny kitchen! Argh!

Deep breaths, one way or the other I'll end up in a better house in 6 months, I'm sure... Thanks for your input everybody.