Stay off the Naughty List with these Smart Holiday Listing and Showing Practices

The holidays are times of hectic bustle as your buyers and sellers celebrate the season. The customary travel, family gatherings and gift giving all can have an impact on your listings and showings. Here’s how to keep your listings compliant and prepare for successful showings during this busy time.

Keep an eye on the statuses of your listings.

Ensure you are taking care of your clients’ needs should they want to hold off on showing their properties during the holidays. Temporary Not Available for Showing (TNAS) may be the best status option to use during that time.

Having a TNAS status means a listing contract still exists but the listing is off the market for a time. There should be no marketing and no showings while in this status. Using TNAS avoids wasting agent time and frustrating buyers who want to see a property that is not available.
Also, be sure to check your pending dates and make sure they are updated before leaving for the holiday weekends.

For more details about listing statuses, check out our the NorthstarMLS Status Guidelines, in the Resources section of the website.

Recognize the increased opportunity for theft at showings during the holidays.

Sellers might find opportunity in showing their homes during the holiday season. But beware that gifts and valuables left out for get togethers can mean increased opportunity for theft.

Talk to your seller about what they can do to not leave valuables out during showings and help maintain the security of their home. When leaving a showing, take extra care to make sure doors are locked and the property is secure before returning the key to the lockbox.

Remember good showing etiquette.

No matter the season, never enter a property without an approved showing. Be sure the showing approval is still active and not cancelled before heading off to your showing. This can help to not waste your buyer’s time…and yours!

Also remember to remove your shoes, be aware of pets in the home and follow all showing instructions for turning lights off and locking doors. It may be that following the showing the sellers are hosting a gathering—help make everything go as smoothly for them as possible so both their holiday and home selling experiences are both good ones!

Have questions?

More information about listing status and showing requirements can be found in the Rules & Regulations section of the NorthstarMLS website. Have additional questions? Contact the NorthstarMLS Rules + Regs team at rules@northstarmls.com.