Despite advances in technology like 3D virtual tours and the ease of having high resolution photos of every nook and cranny of a property, in person showings remain a key part of real estate sales and rentals.
There are a number of rules that exist that need to be followed, but just because they should be followed doesn’t mean they always are! We thought we’d go through how it’s supposed to work and how it actually plays out.
Let’s start with the basics.
Of course, you can show your client the home!
One of the most basic rules of showing real estate is that a licensed real estate agent is the one showing the property to a potential buyer or tenant. After all, while a seller or landlord may understand that in order to get the best price, people need to come see the home, they don’t want strangers wandering around the property without supervision.
Under the old legislation governing real estate in Ontario (REBBA) agents were expected to be present during any access to a seller’s property and to obtain the seller’s consent prior to granting access to a property without an agent present. With the new legislation (TRESA) in place as of December 1st, 2023, things are a bit more specific.
An agent must not provide any person access to real estate unless:
- An agent is present with the person, or
- The seller has consented in writing to the person having access without an agent being present.
It is expected that the seller’s agent will be present each time access is granted unless the seller has expressly authorized otherwise. The buyer’s agent is expected to be present and to continuously supervise the people granted access.
The above is very clear and that means agents are always present for the showings, correct?
As crazy as it sounds (and it is mind-boggling to us), there are occasionally reports of agents booking a showing and then sending their clients on their own. It’s a violation of both TRESA as well as the local MLS rules and it is a sure-fire way to get fined and possibly have your registration revoked. If anything happened at the property, whether items go missing, property is damaged or someone is hurt, the agent who booked the showing would be in a world of trouble.
Thankfully, such incidences are quite rare, with the vast majority of showings taking place under the supervision of a licensed and insured real estate agent.
We’ll pop by whenever works for you.
When a showing of a property for sale or lease is made, it’s not an open invitation for the agent to show it whenever works. Instead, the showing agent requests a specific time or date that fits within the showing schedule that the listing agent has received approval for from the owner.
The conversation we have with our clients who are selling their home about a showing schedule goes over how we need to balance the realities of the occupants of the home with the desire to make the property as available as possible.
If a home is vacant, than showings are allowed anytime (within reason, as a middle of the night showing isn’t helpful for seeing the home, nor for keeping neighbours happy) with no notice. This is the ideal situation for making it as easy as possible for a prospective buyer or tenant to see the home with their agent whenever they want to do so.
In many cases, the occupants of the home (either the homeowners or tenants) need to continue living in the home, which means we come up with a schedule of allowable times for showings and required notice that works for them. Often this means no showings during certain times, such as when the baby is napping and we almost always have at least a two hour notice period for any time slots that are booked. This allows the occupant to plan to leave for the showing without a huge rush.
There are special considerations when dealing with rental properties. Access to rental properties or rental units requires that the property owner, or landlord, provide notification to the tenant, in accordance with the law. If the tenant was not properly notified in advance, the tenant may grant permission if asked, but has a right to refuse access.
Section 27(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act provides that the landlord, or, with the landlord’s written authorization, a registered real estate agent, may enter a rental unit provided that they have given written notice to the tenant at least 24 hours before they enter to allow a potential purchaser or new prospective tenant to view the unit.
Regardless of whether it is vacant, owner occupied or tenant occupied, an approved showing is for a specific real estate agent to show the property at a specific date and time. If Jeffrey Luciano is sent approval to show the property at 2:30 PM for a half hour, on January 26, 2024, then that’s the only time slot that Jeff can show the home. If he’s going to be late or early or not make it at all, he has to contact the listing brokerage to request a change in the time or to notify them is cancelling the appointment.
There you have it, listing agents set reasonable showing schedules that work for the owner or tenant living at the home, showing agents book a showing and show the property during that time. That just makes sense, right?
Sadly, this is probably the biggest source of frustration in the showing process, on both ends of the equation.
On the booking agent side of things, we often see listing agents that set very restrictive showing parameters. While it may not be as extreme as only 9:30 on Tuesday morning or for 10 minutes late Friday evening, it is pretty common to see very limited windows of time available. We’ve seen listings where it is only one specific afternoon on one day, as well as some that only allow during the day, but no evening or weekend showings. While we do know that it is disruptive to the occupants to have showings interrupting their enjoyment of the home, it is a necessary evil in order to get a home sold or find a new tenant. A listing agent who doesn’t push back against very limited showing opportunities is doing their client a real disservice, as fewer showings means fewer offers and a lower sale price.
On the showing side of the equation, it is embarrassingly common to have agents treat a booked showing time as a goal to shoot for, rather than the only time they’re allowed into the home. We have seen agents show up late on countless occasions, where they are trying to start their showing well after the showing period has ended. It’s disrespectful to the occupant who has often left for the showing and in many cases it means that the planned showing doesn’t actually happen as the occupant isn’t able or willing to accommodate the new time. We’ve even heard of agents going back to a home for a second showing on another day without actually booking it at all! While being a few minutes early or late is often accommodated by the occupant, showing times and duration is set in stone and should be respected.
OK, we’re in the home. You go wild, while I make a call.
Showing up to meet the client at a property at the booked and confirmed time slot is a great start to a showing, but there are additional rules as to what can be done while at the home.
Under TRESA, the wording that focuses on this is about how the real estate must exercise care, both in granting access and when granted access to a property. This means that agents must ensure close supervision during access. While it seems wild to us that this needs to be specified, the wording is quite clear.
If you are representing a buyer and make an appointment to show a property, you must remain in attendance for the duration of the appointment and must not leave other people unsupervised on or in the property.
We know what you’re thinking – the agent has to not only show up at the time they booked and let their client in, but they also can’t leave to run an errand or sit and make calls while the people wander through the home? It truly is an unreasonable standard.
In all seriousness, it is very important for agents to ensure that their clients remember they are in someone else’s home and that they should act accordingly. Unless expressly permitted, furniture, appliances, and personal items should not be touched or disturbed during access and bathrooms should not be used. Similarly, bringing food or drinks is frowned upon.
Do buyers and their agents follow these rules when in a home? The answer is unfortunately not all agents exercise proper control over their clients and not all visitors to a home treat it with respect. Whether it is ignoring the sign asking them to remove their shoes, opening bedside tables that are not being sold with the home or having a snack while checking out the bedrooms, the stories of poor behaviour are quite common. While children or babies are often brought on showings for understandable reasons, bringing pets is not permitted. Yes, people sometimes bring their dogs into a home for sale, and yes, accidents have happened.
In recent years we have seen the rise of more recording devices in homes, particularly in smart homes where the owner has invested in technology around the home. It is not uncommon now to see a sign on the front door or in the kitchen saying audio video recording devices are on and that you may be recorded.
Speaking of recording video, let’s talk about another aspect to showings that is a more recent development.
I’m just gonna take a quick video for my followers. Cool?
Social media is filled with videos these days of real estate agents giving tours of properties and commenting upon it. While the idea may be that any publicity is good publicity, under TRESA, taking photographs of a property or making video recordings is not permitted unless expressly authorized by the seller.
In theory, every video that is taken and posted was done after that real estate agent contacted the listing agent and received permission to do so. In practice, many agents seem to forget that while a home for sale may be the agent’s place of work for a half hour, it remains someone’s home. Taking your own photos or videos and putting them online for anyone to view needs to be done with permission and approval of the owner.
We have definitely seen the rise of “showings” where the agent is in fact there by themselves with the purpose of taking a video to share on their social media accounts. This is particularly prevalent for listings that are glamorous or likely to attract lots of attention from their followers. A recent loft listing saw us receive over twenty requests for permission to take a video!
Safety first. Also, safety last.
Let’s finish off with a word about safety.
On the listing side, it is the expectation that the home will be safe to show.
This means that a seller or landlord will make sure the home has lighting in place to allow showings to take place safely and that there will be no hazards that are not clearly communicated.
For showing agents, this means they will keep the lockbox code provided to them to gain access to the keys to themselves and that when they leave, they will ensure that the property is once again secure.
Pretty reasonable expectations? We think so, but this is another area where things often go wrong in showings.
On more than one occasion, we’ve gone to a showing to find an unattended dog on the other side of the front door, very angry at our desire to come into the home. Sometimes, the lockbox isn’t where it was supposed to be, or it’s there but the code is wrong, or the keys aren’t inside.
On the selling side of the equation, there is not much more upsetting than returning to your home after a booked showing to find that the agent who was there left without locking the door or even closing it. As insane as it sounds, we have heard of numerous stories of back doors being left wide open, front doors being unlocked and lock boxes left open with the code showing.
Security and safety is an integral part of the rules and regulations around showing real estate and we’re working hard to make sure that our industry as a whole steps up our game! The new TRESA legislation has increased oversight and fines for real estate agents who don’t follow these crucial rules, and we’re glad to see that happen.
Despite the rise in popularity with virtual showing tools like 3D tours, floorplans and high definition photographs, in person showings remain a crucial part of the real estate transaction in almost all cases. There is truly no substitute for getting a feel for the neighbourhood or building and for seeing a home for sale or rent with your own eyes.
If you’re thinking about buying or selling a home, we’ve developed ways to make it as smooth and stress free an experience as possible. If that sounds good to you, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
