The real estate industry is one of the many industries that have been impacted heavily by COVID-19. Many home sales had to be put on hold due to the stay-at-home order and the economic crises. Now, many real estate agents, homeowners, and potential buyers are looking at ways in which they can buy and sell their property while reducing the risk of infection.
Thankfully, there are several digital tools available to help home sellers and buyers connect safely with each other without the need to meet physically. When closing a home sale, the two parties involved would still need to meet, virtual tools help to minimize the risk of infection.
Precautions for a Home Seller to Consider During COVID-19
Selling a home in the present state of the global economy is hard enough as it is, then, adding the risk of being infected with COVID-19 to the list, and you have a recipe for tough sales.
There are several ways to ensure your safety and that of your family as much as possible when conducting a home sale. Here are a few.
Virtual Technology
The first thing you need to do is take advantage of the virtual technology available to you as it would help to minimize the need for physical contact between you and the potential buyer. Tools like video tours, 3D walkthroughs, and tours with virtual technology devices would help you show your house to your potential buyers.
If you are selling your house through an agent (who has been vetted for COVID-19), you can allow him/her to come to the house alone and do a virtual tour with the use of live video technologies.
Serious Buyers Only
It is understandable that if a buyer is interested in buying your home, he/she will insist on seeing the house in person. You should make sure that the buyer is a serious one, has seen the virtual tour, and has been pre-approved for a mortgage.
If all of the conditions mentioned above have been met, you can allow them to come for an in-person tour. Limit the number of persons allowed to enter the house to one or two, make sure that they have their PPE on, and maintain social distancing protocols while carrying out the tour. You should also make sure that you put on the appropriate PPEs, and if you have children, put them all in a room during the tour.
Disinfect your house after every in-person showing.
Sanitization stations
It is a good idea to have sanitization stations around the house when giving a tour, and encourage your potential buyers to use them before starting the tour and before touching any surface.
Safe From Spread can help with disinfecting your home between potential buyer’s visits and install sanitization stations for your home.
Precautions for a Potential Home Buyer to Consider During COVID-19
Virtual Home Search and Tour
To ensure your safety as a buyer, you should carry out your home searching process online and participate in virtual tours.
If a certain home listed on a listing site has no option for a virtual tour and has no videos showing the relevant areas in the house, you can ask your agent to do a home check for you.
You can make use of an inspector instead of an agent to help you inspect the whole house, while he uses a live video platform to show you the space.
Make sure you are ready to purchase a house or very interested in the home and the area before opting for an in-person tour.
In-person Home tour
Carrying out an in-person home tour is quite tricky because both parties are trying to ensure the safety of themselves and their families. You can ask the seller a couple of questions about where they have been recently (if they have traveled and where), if they practice social distancing and if anyone in their family has had the virus. You should note that no seller is obliged to answer whether or not a family member has had the virus.
If you decide to go for an in-house tour, ensure that you go with a sanitizer and the proper PPE. Observe social distancing measures during your visit and maintain as little physical contact as possible.
If you have any concerns as a home buyer or seller as to the safety of a tour, reach out to Safe From Spread for disinfecting services to help ease the stress of finding your perfect home.