‘Buyer pressure’ leads to new home showing guidelines
Consumers in the real estate market can expect more digital, low-touch home searches and transactions to continue for the foreseeable future.
Realtors are being advised against handshakes and taking clients out in their cars even as the industry prepares for more activity in the coming weeks as the economy reopens.
New guidelines by the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) on Monday suggest that agents continue to take their cue from public health officials in terms of the same precautions seen in the past two months, when in-person open houses and showings were discouraged.
“What we’re starting to see is an increase in consumers looking to realtors to show properties. We’ve been telling our members since Day 1 basically to keep it to essential business only. What we’re starting to see is increased buyer pressure out there where people don’t want to wait for essential business but start to move out and move on with their transactions,” said OREA president Sean Morrison.
The guidelines are designed to keep realtors and their clients safe in terms of preparing homes for listing and for showings.
“We want them to shift to their digital products as much as possible. As we continue to see additional buyer pressures we wanted to make sure if people are going to go out there they had a guideline that was simple to follow,” he said.
OREA is advising agents to continue using virtual tours, including online open houses as much as possible. When in-person home tours happen, agents are expected to ensure their clients wear personal protective equipment and to wear masks themselves.
Ideally the agent would provide that to the clients but shortages mean that won’t always be possible, said Morrison.
Realtors should ensure homes are disinfected between showings and keep the length of tours to a minimum.
Ontario has maintained real estate as an essential service throughout the COVID-19 restrictions, recognizing that some home transactions are essential, including instances where a consumer has to sell one home because they have contracted to buy another.
Showings should be scheduled with time between visitors so that the house can be disinfected between tours.
Light switches should be turned on and doors opened in advance so a potential buyer can see the home without touching surfaces.
If the property is a condo, the agent needs to adhere to the building’s elevator rules. If physical distancing is not possible, only one or two people or members of the same household should be on the elevator at the same time.
Agents are further cautioned against using the bathrooms in homes while they are being shown and to make sure they and their clients wash their hands with soap and water or use sanitizer before and after entering the home.