Real estate in a coronavirus world
Almost immediately after writing last week’s column, government officials in Harris and Galveston counties designated real estate as an “essential” service during the coronavirus crisis. Then, days later, Governor Greg Abbott issued a statewide order that extended that designation across the entire state of Texas.
Even the federal government (U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency) included residential and commercial real estate in its list of “essential functions.”
Most of HAR’s 37,000 members have welcomed the news, as it means they can continue to serve their clients who were in the process of buying or renting a home, selling a home, or looking at homes that they were hoping to buy or rent when suddenly the coronavirus outbreak struck. Buyers had been showing particularly interest in the housing market over the past couple of months with interest rates at historic lows.
But not everybody was thrilled at the notion of real estate business taking place at a time when local leaders have required residents to stay at home. In fact, a number of residents complained on social media about how irresponsible they thought it was to see open houses taking place in their neighborhoods. I appreciate their frustration.
At the time that real estate was declared “essential” in Harris and Galveston counties, HAR had about 13,000 pending sales in the system. Some of those involve consumers who need to be in housing right away for unique and personal reasons ranging from a divorce to the loss of a job.
Several days before the “essential” service designations were announced,
HAR proactively removed all open house listings from our HAR.com real estate website. We also advised all our members to do as much business as possible in a virtual or online environment. That means organizing virtual open houses or conducting virtual property tours. That means if it’s a closing, to use electronic signatures and other online means to complete transactions for their clients who are eager to get into their new homes.
Holding a virtual open house or conducting a virtual tour of a home still requires that the listing agent physically get to that property to either stream the event live on social media or record video that they can post on social media at a later time. So, if you happen to see a Realtor show up at a home listed for sale, we ask that you not assume it’s an open house. But in cases where a Realtor is going ahead with an in-person open house, HAR has advised them against it, but urged them to do so in the safest and most responsible manner possible and abide by their county’s order. That means staggering guests, respecting the 6-foot social distancing standard, and keeping hand sanitizer and antibacterial wipes available.
These are scary and challenging times for all of us, and we will only get through this if we all heed the warnings of health experts and local officials.
Remember that real estate professionals also have families they are trying to keep healthy and safe. Many have kids that are now using distance learning to keep up with their schoolwork from the safety of their homes. But these same real estate professionals also want to be available to those of you who are still interested in buying, selling or renting a home during this health crisis. So don’t hesitate to reach out to your Realtor, or find one on HAR.com, and talk to them about serving your needs through virtual/electronic means.