I’m a mother of two and pregnant with another. We outgrew
our two-bedroom apartment long ago but made do because it’s in a good
neighborhood. Now, however, we really need a bigger place, and we’re finally
ready to buy. I want to be able to visit open houses, but I worry about
dragging the kids along. Are children even allowed at open houses?
Of course kids are allowed! There’s no agent worth her
license who’d turn away a pre-approved buyer because she (or he) had kids in
tow. The bigger question here is: Should you bring the kids? And I
say: It depends on how old they are.
Toddlers, unfortunately, are out. It’s just not a good idea
to have small children running around a stranger’s house. Not only does it
prevent you from taking in the details of the house, it also presents a liability
concern for the agent. What if the kid falls down a flight of stairs? Who’s to
blame? You could blame the homeowner for having slippery stairs, but there is
precedence for the broker being held responsible. While that may not
concern you, when I was a Realtor® in Chicago, I was always extra-vigilant when
clients brought children to showings and opens. There were usually multiple
groups of people touring the house at the same time, and throwing in a pair of
toddlers, even fairly well-behaved ones, can create chaos.
House hunting is challenging in and of itself. Adding small
kids to the mix means adding the same level of project management that you use
to navigate everything else in your world. If you know you’re going to have
your kids during an open house weekend, ask your agent to inform the
listing broker. If you don’t yet have an agent, call the listing agent
yourself. (You could probably even text or email.)
Remember, bringing kids means the agent has to usher
you through the house, room by room. Any loose floorboard or perched sculpture
needs to be pointed out and traversed with the safety precautions usually
reserved for construction sites.
Safety aside, small children get bored easily. They
want to touch, explore, and express themselves. All of which is fine—except
when visiting a stranger’s house. An agent shouldn’t have to both show off
the home’s best features—the Wolf range, the free-standing tub, the antique
bannisters—and protect them from little ones.
I once had a client who pushed her stroller-bound
newborn to every condo building in downtown Chicago. She wanted to tour
homes, and paying for a baby sitter was not in her budget. When it was
time to nurse, the wife recused herself to the minivan. With newborns, it
works.
Teenagers, on the other hand, are mini-adults (though it may
not always seem like it). They have their own opinions and should be
parties to the decision-making process. Teens are not just interested in what
their room will look like, they also want to know what the area has to offer
and who lives nearby. They often bring up good questions their parents
forget to ask, like what type of Internet is available—cable or fiber? The only
problem is, they too get bored. They might think visiting open houses is fun—at
least the first weekend or two—then zone out.
Or you could have the opposite reaction. I once had an open
house where the kids’ room was tricked out with bunk beds, a playhouse, a
slide, and more toys than a childless woman like myself can possibly
remember. It was a huge hit—until the parents had to physically
drag their kids out of the pint-size tepee. Cries, screams, tears. In the
end, it’s just not worth it. Get a sitter!
Got a searing open-house etiquette question? Send it to us
at etiquette@realtor.com.
Chrystal Caruthers is a Chicago native, former Realtor,
TV news producer, and newspaper reporter. Chrystal, who covers real estate
industry news at realtor.com, enjoys cooking, hiking, Bikram yoga, and cookies. Full article found at: http://www.realtor.com/advice/should-you-bring-kids-to-open-house/?cid=soc_20150213_40476126&adbid=10153120699157871&adbpl=fb&adbpr=35368227870
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