Real Estate Agent Personal Safety - Part I
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Last year I was interviewed for the Texas Association of Realtors magazine; however, I never did receive a copy of the article which was about realtor safety. As I was searching through Google today, I came across the article that was done through that interview. Turns out to be a pretty good article on Real Estate Agent Safety. If you are an agent, take a few moments to read the following article. I put it in (3) parts as it was very long.
Courtesy of Texas Association of Realtors
Protect Yourself - Isn’t It Time To Get Serious About Your Safety?
Most of Joan Malone’s clients were either past customers or referrals. That was, until the REALTOR® with RE/MAX DFW Associates in Coppell just happened to be working in the office one day in 1997 when a man walked in wanting to see a few of the homes on the market at the time. She took the seemingly innocuous customer out to do just that, but it didn’t take long for the hackles on the back of Malone’s neck to rise. For starters, she was suspicious of the “friend” who was tagging along, claiming to be an attorney and boasting about the cash funds that would soon be freed up to purchase a home. “I had a strange feeling about the situation,” says Malone, a REALTOR® since 1990. “I even wrote the word flake on the graphic of the home that he liked the best that day.”
Three months later, the potential buyer resurfaced … this time alone. The next day Malone took him out to look at four homes, including one that he’d seen back in January. “I opened the front door and then stayed in a spot where I could watch what he was doing and what was going on,” says Malone. “The next thing I knew, he knocked me off of my feet, broke my back, stabbed me, and tried to strangle me to death.”
Malone passed out, leaving her attacker to assume he had finished the job. Upon waking, Malone painfully crawled to the kitchen phone, dialed 911, and was rushed to the hospital. She spent five days in intensive care and was out of work for three months.
Unwilling to let the attack keep her from the work that she loved, Malone returned to real estate with a renewed spirit and a newfound suspicion of potential threats.
“I learned that I should always trust my intuition,” she says. “Early on, something just wasn’t right with this guy, and I sensed it. But we don’t relate to everyone in the same way all of the time, so it was difficult to just blow someone off who might turn into a sale.”
Should the scenario ever repeat itself, Malone says she’d never take the person out again by herself. Instead, she would bring a friend or colleague along for safety. “One thing’s for sure,” she says, “if a prospect does have a motive other than buying or selling a home—and you do bring someone with you on the appointment—you’ll never see that customer again.”
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What to do with all that advice?
The amount of safety information provided to REALTORS® can be overwhelming. The fact that some of it is conflicting makes it even more difficult to figure out what will work best. Should you really ask for ID from open-house visitors? Is it better to keep your pepper spray on a key chain or hide it in your purse? Should you fight back or allow the criminal to have his way in hopes that he lets you go safely? Cheryl Watterson of Personal Security Solutions says agents need to realize that every situation is different, and that the safety measures that work in one scenario may not necessarily function as planned in another. To avoid getting too caught up in minute details, Watterson says agents should take a step back and consider a few commonsense guidelines, such as doing a gut check before going into a situation alone, taking precautions before working with a client (getting an ID and prequalification paperwork, for example), and avoiding situations that look and feel dangerous.
Robert Siciliano of RealtySecurity.com says sifting through conflicting safety advice is a lot like the sales process itself. You need to listen to all of the experts, digest the information, and take away and implement those strategies that best fit your situation. “Some of my tips just may not be feasible and may not work for someone’s personality style,” he says. “But fundamentals like understanding body language and knowing what’s going on 50 to 100 feet around you at all times work for everyone.” And, as both Joan Malone and Jeannette Armstrong learned, if something feels wrong, it probably is. “Remember,” warns Siciliano. “Your intuition doesn’t lie.”
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Real Estate Agent Personal Safety - Part II
Courtesy of Texas Association of Realtors
Protect Yourself-Isn’t It Time To Get Serious About Your Safety?
Watch for red flags and trust your gut
Safety is a concern for people in all professions, particularly those that require workers to work one-on-one with prospective customers in the field. Whether holding open houses, showing homes, or attending listing appointments, real estate agents can be particularly vulnerable to criminals, as evidenced by the numerous media reports of crimes against licensees.
“Anytime you’re alone with a potential criminal, you’re vulnerable,” says Nancy Hightshoe, a former police detective, professional speaker, and president of Nancy Hightshoe Seminars, Inc. in St. Louis. “REALTORS® are alone with strangers all the time—that’s the nature of their business.”
Robert Siciliano, CEO of RealtySecurity.com in Boston, says the faltering economy is also breeding more criminals. “Desperate times mean desperate measures, and ‘regular’ people end up committing crimes,” says Siciliano. “Combine that with the fact that real estate is a high-risk profession, and you really have to keep your head up and be aware of how vulnerable you are right now.”
Jeanette Armstrong, a REALTOR® with Keller Realty of Frisco, found that out a year ago when she received a phone call from a supposed cash buyer who was interested in $600,000-plus homes, but who wanted to see her $289,000 listing. “That was the first red flag,” says Armstrong. “The second was that he wanted to close in three weeks, but was vague about what he wanted in a home.”
Not comfortable meeting the man alone, Armstrong brought her husband along on the appointment. She had also asked her team leader to meet the prospect in person at the office prior to the showing. The buyer refused to sign a buyer’s representation agreement or Information About Brokerage Services form (yet another red flag), and a nervous Armstrong neglected to get a copy of his driver’s license. For the showings, the prospect drove his own car, following Armstrong and her husband. He was “barely interested” in any of the new home builders that the REALTORS® introduced him to.
“He acted like he couldn’t wait to get out of there,” recalls Armstrong, who has been licensed for eight years. “He then told me that he was meeting someone for dinner, and that he’d call me tomorrow. He never called.” Looking back, Armstrong is relieved that she went with her gut instinct by protecting herself and bringing backup along on the showing appointments. “I don’t know what this buyer’s intentions were, but I know they weren’t to buy a home,” says Armstrong. “When we saw a shovel in the back of the rental truck he was driving, we knew that he could have been dangerous.”
Real Estate Agent Personal Safety - Part III
Courtesy of Texas Association of Realtors
Protect Yourself - Isn’t It Time To Get Serious About Your Safety?
What would you do if … ?
One of the best steps agents can take to protect themselves is to have a plan in place that addresses any scenarios that could take place, says Cheryl Watterson, president at Granger, Indiana-based Personal Security Solutions. Think about what you would do if you found yourself in a potentially dangerous situation, says this self-defense expert, and then mentally walk through the steps you would take to get out of it safely.
Watterson compares her 20-year stint in sales for a national alarm company to the work of a real estate agent. Both are out in the field most of the time and are exposed to a wide variety of people on a daily basis … sometimes under potentially unsafe circumstances. To make sure she wasn’t victimized while working at someone’s home, Watterson trained herself to watch how doors were shut and/or locked behind her, avoided basements when possible, maintained a safe distance from customers, surveyed her surroundings regularly, and knew what she was going to do if someone grabbed or attacked her.
Watterson also urges agents to follow Armstrong’s lead by always carrying pepper spray or mace, particularly when working alone in the field. A fully charged cell phone is equally as valuable, she says, as are self-defense classes and safety-awareness seminars.
Siciliano says a little suspicion can also go a long way in keeping agents safe from harm. “Be suspect of everyone,” he says. “While there isn’t any benefit in being paranoid, being a little guarded can keep you from getting into a vulnerable situation.” And remember that criminals don’t always make their move on the first meeting (as Malone found out). “They like to gain your trust so you feel comfortable carrying cash and jewelry,” says Siciliano, “and then they decide it’s safe to move in.”
Put systems in place to protect yourself.
Get ID and prequalification information from clients during the first meeting, says Siciliano, whether that interaction takes place at the office or offsite. “Start a file with all their identification, including information such as a license plate and employer contact information,” he adds. “Someone who is prequalified by a lender and meets you at the office is less likely to be a predator.”
If the unfortunate occurs, Siciliano advises agents to use predetermined code words to alert the office of the problem, such as green, yellow, and red to indicate the level of severity. For example, say to your contact back at the office, “It’s in the green folder,” letting your contact know you are fine. Or you would say, “It’s in the yellow folder,” thus alerting your contact that the situation is shaky and that you might need assistance.
And remember that regardless of current market or economic conditions, there is—and always has been—a criminal element lurking out there. “There will always be predators stalking their prey and seeking their next victim. Your job is not to be chosen as their next victim,” says Siciliano. “Do that by understanding the fundamentals of personal security and incorporating as many safety strategies into your personal and professional lives as possible.”
Bridget McCrea is a writer and former real estate agent in Dunedin, Florida.
Remember, Stay Aware…Stay Alert…Stay Alive!!
Let’s Talk Home Security–2/4/09 -6:00 PM/EST
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Cheryl Watterson, Talk Show Host-Security Expert
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Stay safe,
Cheryl
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