It's the beginning of a new year and open house signs are in bloom throughout neighborhoods on the Palos Verdes Peninsula and throughout the South Bay.
Unfortunately, some of the weekend warrior home shoppers are really robbers looking for an easy target. Here's an email I received asking agents to be vigilant at open houses:
Please be careful at open houses!
A young well dressed couple driving a Silver BMW showed up at an open house in the Hollywood Rivera. One of them kept the agent busy, while the other one robbed the house. Please be careful and remind your clients to lock up their valuables.
Sellers, one of the most important things you can do before your home is held open is to place valuables in a safe place.
Sell Smart, Buy Wise and Live Well
Norma Toering & Team RE/MAX Palos Verdes Realty
(310) 493-8333
PalosVerdesLifestyle- Norma's award winning site as the best Palos Verdes homes and real estate blog since 2007. Selected by Relocation.com as one of the top ten Los Angeles area real estate blogs. Chosen by MovingCost.com as one of the best Los Angeles realty blogs. Awarded 5 out of 5 stars by Lender411 blog review. Ranked by Technorati in the top 1% of all blogs. As seen in the Daily Breeze newspaper.
South Bay Los Angeles cities I sell real estate, property, houses and homes in: Palos Verdes Estates, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, San Pedro, Long Beach, Torrance, Lomita, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach. Based on information from the Association of REALTORS®/Multiple Listing as of the initial date of this article/blog publication and /or other sources. Display of MLS data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS. The Broker/Agent providing the information contained herein may or may not have been the Listing and/or Selling Agent.
Find Norma on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn - Email Norma
Palos Verdes Homes Blog - Palos Verdes Houses
Palos Verdes Horse Property - Palos Verdes Realtor Agent
Palos Verdes Coastal Homes - Los Angeles Home Search
Photos of Palos Verdes - Palos Verdes Videos
Palos Verdes Luxury Homes - Beach Cities Homes
Norma- thanks for the precautionary warning, as agents we just can't let our guards down at opens, and this great information for sellers to make sure that they aren't easy targets by leaving medications and jewelry out in the open.
Norma: I think there should be two agents at open houses for the reasons you mention above.
Adrian - Just because someones drives a nice car doesn't mean they are on the up and up...
I give personal tours at open house and it helps to have another agent present at the front door to meet, greet and queue up the buyers for a tour of the property.
Jane - I agree, and that's why I so enjoy working with my son and business partner--a six foot guy is a nice security system. :)
Norma, this must be a new trend, just last month the police caught a couple in Toronto doing the same thing. apparently they had over half a million dollars of stolen goods in their own house. We should be extra careful when we conduct open houses.
Hi Norma -- this is a great lead in to the de-cluttering process conversation that needs to occur when a homeowner places a property on the market for sale. Small personal items can easily be taken so start the packing process now so you can be ready when the offer(s) start arriving.
We have had a rash of homeless folks moving into vacant homes. So watch your vacant listings, too!
Jeff's right. I showed a vacant property and the squatters must have had a way of leaving and returning via a window when they heard agents coming through the door. My clients found a make-shift rope tied at an open window. Be very careful at when opening a vacant property to hold it open and at showings.
Malcolm - Crooks get more creative every day!
Michael - Yes, this is an upfront conversation I have with sellers, but I once found a diamond ring in a dish on a dresser in the master bedroom. The wife was delighted I put it away for her. She took it off to clean the master bathroom tub and forgot to put it back on her finger.
Jeff - That's scary.
Karen - Wow, that's scary too.
Norma, So sad these things happen. We cannot be too careful. An open house is a perfect time to trust no one … keeping eyes on all parties at all times. A 12 year old girl placed her laptop on her bed and positioned pillows around it – had the webcam running to catch her younger sister in her room. She caught a former real estate agent stealing – opening her drawers and pocketing the goods. He had been convicted for doing the same while he was an agent … thus why he is a former agent. This was all over our local news.