What to Know About Selling Your Home During Social Distancing

As much as real estate traditionally has been an in-person business, it’s understandable that home sales would slow a bit when people are social distancing and staying home.

But that doesn’t mean home sales aren’t happening. In our Lakeville area, in fact, there hasn’t been a softening in prices or a huge drop in demand due to more people staying at home. The National Association of Realtors reported in early spring that new listings of homes for sale were down a bit, but people are still selling homes.

If you’re considering selling your home while people are social distancing, here are a few things you should know.

You’re not likely to have open houses

When people are staying away from group gatherings, it makes sense that real estate agents wouldn’t hold traditional open houses. If you’re a home seller, it might make you nervous to have less foot traffic from potential buyers, but fewer people in your house also means that you and your family have less exposure to strangers. 

If you’re comfortable with having your listing agent in your home, they can hold virtual “open houses,” using video conferencing to walk through the home with multiple people. They might also want to do live interactive tours with individual buyers, by which they could be better able to answer questions and go into more detail on the home.

Keep in mind that almost all other home sellers are in the same boat, so you’re probably not at a competitive disadvantage without open houses. Also remember, that even if you would be comfortable with hosting an open house, your listing agent and potential buyers might not be willing to attend.

Not all technology tools are the same

With buyers doing virtual visits to homes for sale, technology will obviously play a huge role. Fortunately, home buying and selling has been tech-heavy for several years now, and will simply become more important. But not all technology is created equal.

First off, different agents have differing levels of experience with technology. Some are more willing than others to use it, and some are more knowledgeable about it. As your realtor, I’m here to help you navigate this journey.

Many options exist for showcasing your home, without people even needing to step inside. There are three-dimensional recorded home tours. There are scheduled interactive tours, also pre-recorded. Some agents might live-stream a walk-through. Before you sign your listing agreement, I’ll help you get a good idea of how your home will be marketed and shown via technology.

It might take a little longer…or will it?

We thought the entire process would slow down drastically, but that is just not the case. In fact, some of the practices being implemented today, will likely move into permanent SOP. Call it a silver lining to a rough season of changes. We only team up with companies who have made the necessary changes to SAFELY transact business, in this environment. Photographers, stagers, inspectors and appraisers are all following new guidelines to protect you. 

Our team will help in this process, so buyers and sellers do not have to worry about being penalized for any social distancing-related delays.

The bottom line

Homes are selling, and with most people staying home, online home searches have gone up as much as 80%! Social distancing may not have slowed down home sales dramatically, it has changed the way we do business. Just keep in mind that showing your home will be a bit different, and the technology agents use will be vitally important.  Through each step of the process, my team and I are here to help!

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