Page 10 - Real Estate Now Jan-Feb 2022

9 Things to Never Leave Out

During an Open House

Wendy Helfenbaum courtesy realtor.ca
veryone knows not to leave cash on the kitchen counter or jewelry sitting on your nightstand before an open
house but there are other things besides valuables you should think about stashing away. Thankfully, with a bit
Eof due diligence, it’s unlikely you’ll run into any issues.

“I’ve only had one screwdriver stolen during a property visit in my 23-year real estate career,” says Katia Samson, a
REALTOR® and certified real estate broker with Group Sutton Centre Ouest in Montreal. “I always do a tour of the
property before any showings and if I think an item should be put away, I tuck it in a drawer.”

With lots of visitors coming and going, you still want to be sure to secure, hide or remove these nine items. Your
REALTOR® can help guide you through the process to make sure you’ve checked off the various items on this list.

1. Mail, private documents and passwords
If identity thieves don’t mind rooting through your garbage to find personal information, they will happily swipe it off
your desk. Tuck away your mail, social insurance card, banks statements, passport, utility bills and credit cards. If you
can’t take these things with you, hide them somewhere visitors won’t find them. This goes for
your online passwords, too. Don’t display your Wi-Fi password and avoid leaving a list of your
personal passwords taped next to your computer.

2. Ashtrays
You may already know the smell of smoke is a huge turnoff to home buyers, but even the
suggestion people light up in your home is enough to make them move on to the next
property.
“If a property smells like tobacco or marijuana, it will be very difficult to sell,” says Samson.

3. Plug-in air fresheners

Yes, you want your house to look and smell fresh, but buyers might be sensitive to that flowery mist. Worse,
they might wonder if you’re trying to cover up a bigger problem. While you’re at it, avoid sloshing bleach
or other harsh chemical cleaners everywhere before the open house begins–buyers might think you’re
concealing mould issues and could be turned off by the harsh smell.