The articles bring up some valid points to think about if you are contemplating selling your home. Unfortunately, the articles also rush to the conclusion that open houses and virtual tours are a thief’s best friend and agents who suggest you do them are just out for the fast buck. This despite the fact that the police Mr. Lazarus interviewed said they seldom get open house burglary complaints. For the record, I googled San Francisco’s crime statistics and found that the SF police department gets OVER 500 burglary cases reported a month! (See: http://www.sfgov.org/ ). As such, I just don’t see how the reporter can seriously call something a “Boon for Burglars” when the latest example he has is six months (and 3,000 cases) old and the police say they can only remember a guy six or seven years ago who used to specialize in doing it?

However I’m not writing this article to discredit Mr. Lazarus. Indeed, I believe security is a serious issue to be considered when selling your home. I’m just disappointed because a seasoned reporter from a large, well respected newspaper could have written a great article interviewing safety experts and discussion SOLUTIONS a seller could take to safeguard themselves from such a crime (i.e. doing his readers a service). Instead the reporter took the cheap route to sensationalism by playing upon the FUD factor (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt).

The reason this is an issue at all is because of one key fact: If people don’t see your home, odds are in favor they won’t buy it. There really isn’t a way around this fact because very few buyers buy homes sight unseen (generally those that do are looking to bulldoze your home as soon as you are gone!). For that reason, when you want to sell your home you really have no choice but to open it up to people you don’t know. Like it or not, when you open your home up to prospective home buyers you also open it up to the public at large who may be pretending to be a home buyer so they can be nosey, curious, or worse.

The solution to this problem is to just use a whole lot of common sense. In my mind, the mark of a good agent is someone who will walk through the home with the client and discuss how to “stage” the home well before the home is ever listed. (I discussed this topic in February, see: “Your Basement Smells Like Urine Part III” at http://www.stlagent.com/blog/00000038.html).

You see, the stuff people want to steal generally brings with it a second problem- it’s distracting. The average buyer only spends a few minutes in a home before they head out to the next one. That’s why you want your prospective buyers looking at the home and the home’s unique selling features- not the stuff in it.

A good recommendation is to pre-pack anything that is distracting, eye catching, breakable, or valuable- leaving nothing out in the open that you wouldn’t let a group of small children or pack of dingoes be around. I personally recommend PODS- Portable On-Demand Storage- because the POD gets dropped off and gives you the seller time to pack the stuff on your own time table. Plus, the POS can be delivered weeks or months later to the new home whenever it’s convenient to be unpacked (unlike a traditional move where the stuff is setting around in nice, easy to cart off boxes waiting for a truck to arrive on moving day). It also allows you to clear out clutter or excessive furniture that may make your house look small.

There are also solutions to securing valuables in a home that can’t be packed up (watches, jewelry, money, etc). There are companies that make shaving cream cans, books, Coke cans, etc that are really decoy safes (see: http://www.safetycentral.com/cansafes.html or do a Google search on “decoy can safes”. Just make sure the safe you are buying is appropriate for the room you are hiding it in (i.e. no shaving cream in the kitchen). Another more traditional solution would be bank safe deposit boxes or just flat out hauling stuff to a trusted neighbor or family member’s home until the house is sold. The key is, if someone is taking the trouble to case your home and they don’t see anything worth while to steal, your chances they will come back are greatly diminished.

Realize also that the Average Joe who gets a case of sticky fingers when they see that $20 setting out on your nightstand is as big of a threat to worry about as the professional thief. When you list your home for sale you start your life in a “fishbowl.” That means taking a few minutes every morning to secure things prior to leaving the house just in case you have a showing that day. Again, what they can’t see, they can’t take.

The next step is securing the home. If you are about to sell your home, odds are in favor that your future buyer’s building inspection will catch the broken door locks and windows that don’t latch and make you fix them (or pay to have them fixed) prior to closing. So why not take the time to fix them prior to selling so they don’t tempt a potential burglar looking for an easy target? This should also help protect you from the amateur thieves that may lurk in your own neighborhood. Also look for simple, cheap solutions that might provide a little extra protection- like a brace to lock a sliding glass door from being forced open. If you have a lot of computer or electronic equipment, there are locks and chains that tether your equipment to the furniture that are relatively inexpensive (see: http://www.kensington.com/ ).

Another thing to remember is when selling your home you often have your daily routine broken up- and that makes you vulnerable. It’s a lot like being on vacation. If your home is going to be setting empty while you are out of town looking for a new place to live, have a trusted friend or neighbor periodically check up on it. Also make sure the lawn gets mowed and stop mail and newspaper delivery. Nothing says, “No one’s home,” quite like two weeks worth of newspapers strewn across an unmowed lawn. You can also get timers for internal lights pretty inexpensive now.

Prior to moving is a great time to set down with your insurance agent and discuss homeowner’s insurance. If you are really worried about theft during the moving/selling process, then being properly insured during this time should help you sleep easier. Not all policies cover valuables if they leave the home either. Forget about theft for a second and ask yourself what happens if the moving truck is in a wreck or your in-laws garage burns down? Make sure your valuables are insured if they are in a moving truck, POD, storage shed, or someone else’s home. This may require a short term renter’s contract or other short term solution.

Moving time is also a great time to take inventory WITH A CAMERA! If you don’t own a camera, go buy a case of disposable ones. By taking photos or a video of your valuables prior to packing and moving, you have proof that an item wasn’t damaged before a mover touched it (should you have a problem later on). This will also help you identify missing items should your home actually be the one that gets broken into as well as provide proof to your insurance company so you can get reimbursed.

Lastly, when you start to prepare for the safety of your valuables, also consider the safety of you and your family. Personal effects can tell a stranger a lot about you- and your children. Those credit card and bank statements you have setting out on your desk could provide a goldmine to someone looking for an identity theft victim. Family photos hanging on the wall can tell strangers more about your family than you may feel comfortable having them know. I generally feel the less a buyer knows about a seller the better off the seller is.

Again, the goal here isn’t to make you afraid of selling your home- it’s to PREPARE you for it. Although the odds, based on the stats I’ve seen, are pretty low that theft would happen, preparing yourself properly will only reduce your chances.