Two weeks ago, after a showing our brand new DVD camcorder went missing. Since we had no absolute proff that a young couple viewing our home took it, we had to just let it go. however, I took extensive measures to make sure it did not happen again. I hid cameras in all areas of the home (surveillance system). After the last showing I noticed many items had been moved about inside cupboards and things, so I reviewed the tape. The agent brought a family of five people. They scatterd about my home. This middle aged fat lady proceeded to dig through private areas in my home. Like under my bed, in my nightstand and in the closets. I don’t think she took anything, but she was sure looking hard! I had a curio cabinent full of over a 0,000 art collection, is was wrapped in a blanket , she pulled the blanket back and looked at all my stuff, but the agent was coming round the corner, so she failed to open it. ShouldI do something here? Agents, you need to watch your clients! This was bad
I would suggest staying home for showings from now on. Most of the time this is a no-no but it sounds like you are having more than to be expected trouble. You can also request that your agent be present for all showings and make it clear to them that you want the buyers in eyesight at al times.
The note about the snake is a pretty good idea also!
Leave a note on your front door that says:
"Please be quiet, as my pet rattlesnake has escaped, and he does NOT like loud noises, or sudden movements! He favors dark places, like cabinets, and closets, so if you MUST look inside, do it very CAREFULLY!
Thank you, for your consideration, as you tour my house."
Your home will take a bit longer to sell, but you’ll have peace and quiet for a longer time, too!
I would be reporting all this to your Realtor, as well as your Realtor’s supervisor! Your Realtor is responsible for anyone in your home while it is showing, thus they are responsible for anything that went missing…if your Realtor cannot control the people he/she brings into your home, they have no business being a realtor and you would have grounds for cancelling the contract with them and finding a TRUSTWORTHY and RESPONSIBLE Realtor…
Wow you are a genius. That’s a really good idea and I agree with you. I am a real estate agent and many times this scam is played on agents where they have a bunch of little kids running around so the agent fears the kids are going to break something and so they watch the kids very closely.
Which is what the scam artists thieves want the agents to do. I am aware of this scam and if it’s a large family I won’t show it by myself but will bring other agents in my office to "keep an eye on them".
One really good thing you can do is put signs up that the house is being monitored LIVE on camera for security purposes.
Also another thing folks don’t really think about, but I was thinking about it and I also saw it on tv the other day, is the new Internet Real Estate marketing that is going on.
This is where cameras are set up in the house but people on the Net can look at your house. But, like you were saying about your art for example, they can look at "your goods and valuables" and windows and what kind of locks etc..
As a homeowner you hire an agent to sell your house and to do it in a way where you don’t have to worry about stuff like that. Thanks for posting the question and I think that movie camera thing you did was a good idea and I would also put up little signs saying the house is being monitored via live camera for security purposes.
I think if they "knew" they were being watched this would help them "fight their temptation".
Good luck in selling your home, let’s hope they didn’t take anything else you haven’t noticed missing yet.
I agree with you, that never should have happened. I would FIRMLY discuss it with my realtor! It is his/her responsibility to keep a close eye on everyone inside the home during a showing. I’m sorry this happend to you. Other than that, you should make sure all your valuables are in "lock up" during a showing!
Put your valuable in storage….
Rule number 1……..
Report any and all lost items to the police (it not going to help, but it will be on the record) and the Realtor’s Broker.
Put up small warning sign in the window for the monitoring system, so you can use it in court if need to.
Good luck on selling your home.
As a seller, you should have been clearly advised to remove any such valuables from your house. While you DO want your house to appear very attractive to prospective buyers, it makes NO sense to leave easily taken valuables from the home.
Realtors can only watch so much as to what is occurring. If you left $100K worth of valuables in a curio chest, you are simply ASKING for trouble.