Please Respect My Lock Box-I Paid For It
I have a property listed for sale as a short sale and for the ease of showing the home provided my sellers with a lock box. This makes it easy for other Realtors to show the property. As long as other Realtors are a member of one of our local boards they can access the property using the key inside. To access the box they require codes or a digital card as shown below. Codes are only given to members not to the general public.
Our lock boxes are virtually indestructible and for good reason. A property key is inside and needs to be held as secure as possible. These lox boxes currently cost me $95.00 each.
My listing is a short sale and the mortgage company wanted to preserve the property especially as it is winter here. So they sent out a property preservation company to winterize the home. During the afternoon in question I got a call from the company who were on site and just giving me a heads up about what they were doing. They got my number from the for sale sign. When I asked how they were getting in they told me the owner had let them in. In fact this was true, I was expecting the owner to go that day and it just so happened they were all there together, so no need for me to go out.
A day later I decided to check the property as I was in the neighborhood. Imagine my annoyance when I discover that the Property Preservation Company decided my lock box was not worth preserving and had attempted to break into it. From what I could see they decided to try and pry it open from the top and in fact managed to split the covering plastic. But they failed to open the box.
The box still is fully functional, cannot be broken into-that little Realtor logo stopped their attempt as they could not break it anymore.
So please respect my lock box, it is not yours to break or even try to. All you had to do was call!
Copyright 2010 Corinne Guest, All Rights Reserved.- Please respect my lockbox-I paid for it.
Corinne Guest
Realtor & Managing Broker
Royal Advocate Realty, Barrington
Call today 847-363-3686 for real estate and relocation service.
Suburban Real Estate - Lake Zurich, Hawthorn Woods, Kildeer, Long Grove
If they called you from the sign, why would they think the lockbox was something not needed by a Realtor? How rude, and I hope you get them to buy a new one. It might still work, but I imagine it looks beat up.
Oh my Gosh, did you get the company to pay for the damage? What is wrong with people?
I would send them the bill!!! In triplicate!!! You must be the nice Realtor to just write the blog while I am the crabby Realtor and I threaten people. I put a regular old-fashioned lockbox on a SS listing because the tenant didn't trust Sentrilock. He kept changing the code and agents couldn't show. So I finally put on a Sentrilock box. The tenant threatened to cut the shackle with bolt cutters. When I called the board they said the charge would be $250 for a damaged box. I left a message for the tenant saying that if he tampered with Baird&Warner property we would charge him with vandalism and destruction of property. Oh, for the days of just showing pretty houses with pretty kitchens and nit-nattering over which had the nicest granite counter top.
we've filed a police report in the past naming both the management company and lender who hired them when a lockbox was either damaged or stolen ( yes removed totally by changing the door knob ). with cost of over $100 each this is no petty crime.
I think realtors should pick up their signs and lock boxes immediately after closing. I purchased a house in January and the lock box is still attached to my doorknob, I took the for sale sign down and tossed it in the woods(my property), I got tired of people driving up to see the house; the realtor never bothered to put sold on the sign. The lockbox is an electronic one so I am sure it was expensive; I know the agency is a Realty USA outfit but i'm not about to try to figure out their phone number or call them. How long should I wait before cutting the box off and disposing of their litter(the sign)? The other side
Jack,
My listing is still an active listing. it was not sold or taken off the market. The lender was preserving the asset as it is vacant. I agree, I get my lock boxes off the day any listing closes or is cancelled and remove my signs. That is not the case here. The company was trying to break in to get the key so they did not have to pay a locksmith.
I moved in almost 3 months ago and can't get the realtor to remove the sensor lock from my faucet and sign from my yard. I've called both the agent and the Century 21 office. I took the sign down and will cut off the lock if I don't receive a reply from the county association of realtors, my last resort. It's obvious they got their commission and can't be bothered now. I'd never in a million years use this agent/company.
Pat,
I am sorry to learn of your plight. Have you called the agent that represented you and ask them to call the listing agent. There is no excuse for this. If I were you I would turn up at the office and ask to speak to the person in charge. Whilst you should not have to, the more noise you make the more likely some-one will respond. If I could help I would but I don't know where you are.
I know that LockBoxSwap <a href="http://www.lockboxswap.com/buy-lockbox">buys lockboxes</a> regardless of condition. A few months back there was a realtor in my office that left boxes hanging on a home long after it closed. The new owner had tried to pry it open with no success and ended up just cutting the shackle. The box was all but destroyed buy<a href="http://www.lockboxswap.com/">LockBoxSwap</a> paid them for what was left and properly rececled it.
Just some food for thought!