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Ann Arbor Real Estate Blog

Blog about Ann Arbor and Saline Michigan

Ann Arbor Sellers Is Your Home Safe?

Ann Arbor Home Sellers

If you home is listed for sale, is your home safe? In Ann Arbor we have the opportunity to put a SentriLock lock box on our listings. Unfortunately many Realtors don’t use them.

Yes, they cost a little more, but so what.

SentriLocks are electronic lock boxes that require a card. The costs of the card to Realtors is $8.00 a month. The lock boxes are $80.00.

When we first started using them, the Ann Arbor Board of Realtors sold them to us for $35.00.That afforded us the opportunity to use them at an awesome price.

I bought a bunch for my sellers so I could provide them with the utmost security.

Excuses

As a Director on the Ann Arbor Board of Realtors I have heard every excuse you can imagine on why agents don’t use them.

  • Never had a break in with the old lock boxes.
  • They cost too much.
  • I don’t want to go to the office to update my card.

Foreclosures

Foreclosures are everywhere. Did you know most banks use the same code over and over again. That means it doesn’t take Rocket Science to figure out the codes. They are even the same in Nashville, where my son is a licensed Realtor.

One Day Codes

SentriLock affords us the ability to give out a one day code to Contractors, Inspectors on other agents. So if the agent doesn’t pay for the card to access a home, we can give them a one day code or a 2 hour window code to view the home.

Here is the difference over an electronic lockbox vs a punch number non-electronic lockbox. When the agent calls for a showing and they don’t have a key, the showing is tracked. We know who the code was given to and can provide security for our sellers.

One of my short sales had a showing recently and the agent did not have a card, so the Keller Williams Showing Assistant gave the agent the One day code. My sellers kids were home, the buyers agent thought it was vacant. The agent gave the code to her buyers to come in alone.

What a surprise!

The sellers were surprised when in walked the buyers WITHOUT their agent. So they called me. It ONLY took a few minutes to know which agent had given out the code to her buyers and let them view the home without her being present. Can we say Violation of our Code of Ethics and Professional Standards?

Ann Arbor home sellers, use a Realtor that will help you provide the utmost security to your home while it is on the market.

If your listing agent can not afford the electronic lockbox, we rent them at the Board office for $5.00 a month.

When you are interviewing Realtors to list your home in the Ann Arbor Area, ask them what lock box they will use on your home. Don’t assume.

Check back as I share in the next week, some scary things that have happened to homes for sale in Ann Arbor.

 

 

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