I wrote on the topic, “Safety In Vacant
Homes” recently, but did not touch on what to look for when first viewing a
home that had been supposedly vacated.  First, it is very important to know that foreclosed, vacant homes
account for a very large percentage of the homes that are on the market today.
If you work with investors and preview the properties
before you take your client for a look,
please think about what to do when you arrive for the first time. Oh, before
even travel to the property, make sure that you inform someone where you will
be, especially if it is an unfamiliar area or neighborhood. There have been a
number of incidences recently that are very disturbing, where Realtor's have
been injured. You can be safe, you just need to think ahead and be very
observant of your surroundings. Take these questions into consideration -
1. If the house is vacant, are windows or
doors open? 2. If the home had been previously boarded
up, had some sections of the plywood been removed? 3. Is the crawlspace secure? 4. Had the entry doors been kicked-in?
If
you said yes to any of these questions, just assume that either someone is in
the home or had recently left for the day. If you are confident and feel safe
to enter into the home, you must perform and initial sweep of the home to make
sure that no one else is present. Be observant to what is in the home. Are
there any personal items, such as clothes, food items or recent waste? Anything
that you may see could indicate when someone had been there. When ever you
enter into a home, always make sure that you lock the door behind you and
locate an alternate means to exit the home, be a window or another door.  Not
long ago, I was confronted in a “vacant” home. I sensed that someone was there
before I even entered. I looked at the home on a hot summer day and first
noticed that the upper level windows and doors were open. I then found that the
main entry door was closed, but it had been kicked-in. The home was quiet, even
after I noticed clothing on the counter top in the heavily damaged kitchen. The
quiet was broken with the barking of a large and obviously agitated Pit Bull.
The dog was quieted when his owner emerged from the left hand bedroom, yelling
for him to shut up. Needless to say, I was somewhat, Ok completely fill
in the blank. The dog was called off and I proceeded to explain why I
was there. He appeared to understand my need to be in the home and I even felt
somewhat at ease, well, until he entered back into “his” room and emerged with
a machete. The story ends when he informed me that he was just as scared as I
am left with his dog. When my heart beat slowed somewhat, I continued with the
inspection. If you didn’t figure it out, this could have ended much differently
and very badly.  When
looking at “vacant” homes, always first walk around the home to determine if it
is occupied and then sweep the interior. Before you even get to the home, it is
very important to let someone know where you will be and when you will be back.
Never take the word “vacant” for granted. Be safe and sell a home. Oh, and use
Morlin Property Inspections to make sure it is what you and your client thought
it was. Richard Morse Morlin Property Inspections Atlanta Home and Commercial Property Inspections www.MorlinPropertyInspections.com Office: (770) 564-1505 Cell: (770) 344-7416 |
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