Yes, We Have no Lockboxes

Most who have found themselves out looking for a new house have found themselves watching a Realtor struggle with opening a real estate lockbox. Lockboxes are those little metal boxes with ABC combinations holding the keys to the house.

When we list property, we dont use lockboxes. Matter of fact, we don't even own one.

Lockboxes are a security risk to the property. They signal a lazy real estate listing agent. Far worse, they also allow practically anyone to enter the home, or in the case of cancelled showings of a home, make it nearly impossible for homeowners to know if someone was in their house or not.

The listing agent who uses lockboxes is really saying to the owner: I'll list your house for sale, but don't expect me to show it every time someone wants to see it. A practical question a homeowner could ask at this point is; since you will be the listing agent and the contract says you are going to sell the house, how are you going to sell it if you're not there? and how would a buyer's agent seeing the house for the first time know every aspect of this house?

These are practical questions. During the listing of a home, we learn virtually everything there is to know about a house. How old is the water heater, when was the hardwood refinished, where are the exact property lines; the list is nearly endless. It's not even practical to think an agent showing the house to their buyer clients would know any of these things. The buyer ends up leaving the property with more questions than answers and a sale never takes place.

Another common scenario is for the buyer's agent to no-show or cancel showings. Of course the listing agent doesnt know that because there is a lockbox on the door, they werent there, and its no big deal to them if the buyers agent showed up or not.

We attend every single showing of our client's homes. Other agents always state to me, "that must be very inconvenient". It's not nearly as incovenient as having your home on the market for sale. And by not using lockboxes and being available to answer all questions about a property, the goal is to make sure it's on the market for a minimum time and the sale is made.


The Friendly Real Estate Broker loves real estate questions and challenges from the public. Baseball trivia is welcome also.

Regular People are Buying Real Estate (again)

The hardest part of a real estate slump is when it starts, there's no official notification, and when its coming to an end, no one tells you that either. You have to figure that one out yourself.
That's because real estate isn't just local, it's also very personal. Real estate is an area where perception truly is reality and frankly I'm seeing regular people's perception right now as though it's a darn good time to buy real estate.
Here's two classic examples we just brokered. A senior couple wants to simplify and downsize so we list their home for sale for 199K. It sells for 185K (typical in Litchfield County at 93% of list price). At first glance, you might argue they are taking a big hit. Yet the home they purchased listed at 205K, and closed at 183K. It is worth noting that real estate isnt always just about the numbers, at least regular people dont view it that way. In this case, these regular folks got the home they really wanted, got rid of the house they no longer wanted and even managed to make a few thousand dollars along the way. Sounds like a square deal to me.
The next scenario involves specific markets. Seller has a very upscale property in a resistantly strong market (primarily due to outstanding schools) so they are able to sell within 40 days at 96% of listing price and closed at 785K. Since the kids are now out of high school, they move to a more rural area not more than 5 miles away, choosing a property that we researched and were able to close on a property at 562K which was listed at 625K. This is the classic case of selling high and buying low.
Two very different scenarios, each with equally satisfactory results.