Safety, health and well-being are always a priority for our EXIT Southeast agents, brokers and owners. National Realtor Safety Month is the perfect time to evaluate your protocols when working with potential clients and the public.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is a great clearing house on Realtor safety from Covid protocols to day-to-day life tips. Click here for more information.
One of the most important things you can do as leader is create a safety plan for interacting with the public.
“We strongly encourage our owners, brokers and agents to reinforce safety at weekly and monthly meetings,” said EXIT Southeast Regional Owner Stacy Strobl. “It is a good idea to cover this regularly but with new topics, information and guest speakers. We sometimes get busy in the daily minutia and forget to make personal safety and getting home to your loved ones a top priority.”
Your biggest resource is the cell phone. Be sure it is fully charged, bring a charger, share your location and contemplate creating a group “find my iPhone” thread in the event of an emergency with your close contacts. Also, have emergency numbers programmed into your phone for quick activation.
Be aware of the neighborhood in which the open house is taking place looking for anything out of the ordinary. Park on the road so your car won’t be blocked in. Be friendly with the neighbors upon arrival and departure. Limit the ways in which someone enters the home by keeping the garage and back doors locked.
Be sure you tell your clients to put away any personal information, especially mail, during an open house and lock up all valuables and prescription drugs as well as any electronic which could be easy to swipe.
Also, at the end of the open house, don’t assume everyone has left. Check the premises and backyard before locking the doors. Always have a buddy system for an open house so a friend, colleague or relative will know what is going on. Never take this for granted.
This tip is a hard one because the cell phone has become an extension of our hands these days as you can see from so many photos – work and play!
When entering a building for a meeting, or exiting, be sure you are more aware of your surroundings rather than staying up-to-date on social media, texts or emails. One of the top things a mugger is looking for is the person distracted or disengaged with their surroundings.
Social media usage has definitely impacted safety as well. Be cautious when sharing your travel plan or day-to-day activities. Be cautious about what you share and the privacy settings for your social media.
Are you making your online accounts easy for hackers? Be sure to vary passwords, don’t keep them on your phone and incorporate symbols and numbers for complexity while always using more than six characters.
The car is the mobile office these days. Keep it well-maintained for your safety and it will help extend the life of the vehicle. Never allow your gas gauge to hover on empty and keep an emergency kit on hand and up-to-date with water, blanket, jumper cables, snack and a first-aid kit.
Answering a text while driving makes you 23 more times likely to have an accident according the NAR. Turn off your alerts and text after you park. Make this a habit.
Use your office address for your business emails and never share your home address. Also, it is a good idea to have a work email and a personal email.
The real estate market is very hectic throughout the Southeast but you must get to know a client before traveling with them and showing properties. Make sure they know you have a safety system in place and never be shy to let them know you have a buddy system with your colleague, broker or loved one.
And, always, always trust your gut and instincts and leave a situation if you feel uncomfortable.
Safety involves more than just open houses but is it something to consider daily says EXIT Southeast Regional Owner Kenny Lynn.
“We encourage our EXIT family to have updates and reminders at your monthly meetings so it stays top of mind,” Lynn said. “It’s also a good idea to bring in guest speakers so the tips remain fresh and helpful.”
Be sure you check out EXIT Realty Corp. International’s Focus on Good Health tips by clicking here. This site is a great resource on health, wellness, lifestyle as well as healthy recipes!
Ultimately, we want all of our EXIT Southeast family to be safe, healthy and happy!
EXIT Southeast daily strives to provide the 5 Pillars for our owners, brokers and agents which is one of the reasons while we have consistently earned #1 Region and #1 in Franchise sales for EXIT Realty Corp. International. EXIT Southeast will be hosting an epic Rally for agents, brokers and owners in Orlando. Florida, October 20-22 providing on site coaching, training, mentoring and networking. Click here for more information. Connect with EXIT Southeast today for real estate opportunities in Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and now Texas where Kenny Lynn and Stacy Strobl serve as Regional Owners. Contact us today at info@EXITSoutheast.com.
