Keeping Your Home Secure While It’s on the Market

Admittedly, listing your home for sale can be a stressful, and often disruptive life event.  One of the concerns that home sellers may have is keeping their home secure and safe while it’s on the market, and open to the public for showings.   Therefore, here are some tips to help you maximize keeping you and your family safe during this time.

First, while prepping your home for sale, take some steps to maximize your family’s privacy.  Remove anything in your home that contains private information such as personal photos, items with your family’s names on it, your children’s school information/team sports, and any financial information about you and your family.   As a corollary to this, also go through your home and remove (and secure) valuable items that you may have on display.  For example, items such as valuable musical instruments, jewelry, electronics, guns/gun safes, and artwork, are items that may be enticing to those with nefarious motives.

Another area to consider is items that may tip off people in your home that you will be absent for extended periods of time, such as calendars with upcoming vacations clearly marked.   And, do you have any medicine (especially narcotic pain medicine) in your medicine cabinets?  Prospective buyers do open these, to check out storage capacities, so be sure to secure these items before showings.   Finally, don’t leave extra keys out in the open (for your home, your vehicles, etc), or any key codes displayed where people can see them, or any extra remotes for your home’s garage.

Taking a few small steps to secure your home’s belongings as well as the security of your family will help to make this often-stressful time a bit less difficult to navigate.  Having this peace of mind will prove to be invaluable in the long run.  I’d be happy to give you more tips that are specific to you, and your individual situation.

Are you considering selling your home?  Get started with this free home value estimate.