Selling homes can open possible security gaps

Most people wouldn’t open their front door and invite a stranger to come inside and have a look around. But that is, essentially, what people are doing when they put their home up for sale and show it to potential buyers.

Bill Cassell, Metropolitan Police Department public information officer, said his department had no statistics for crimes perpetrated on open homes but that there have been a few instances where Realtors have been attacked. He said homeowners should take precautions.

“There’s a lot of sanitization you should do, past what you would do if you were having company over,” he said. “First of all, you want to make sure there is nothing exposed that’s going to indicate where your jewelry is or where your firearms are, where your valuables are. Things like that need to be concealed.”

He said to take prescription pills out of the medicine cabinet.

He suggested cleaning out a couple of areas in the kitchen and/or bathroom and saying, “I’m not going to open all my cabinets, but here’s a representative sample of what they’re like.”

When the individual arrives, it’s appropriate to ask him for identification, Cassell said.

“And it’s also perfectly appropriate for them to ask you for identification because this danger thing swings both ways,” he said.

Cassell said a person should trust his instincts. Don’t open the door for visitors who make one feel uneasy.

“If they’re truly interested in buying the home, they’ll come back,” he said.

Robert Siciliano, CEO of realtysecurity.com, said having a stranger in an environment where you normally feel safe and secure can be disconcerting.

“You’re making yourself vulnerable,” Siciliano said. “You’re doing exactly what Mom said not to do. You’re talking to strangers. You’re bringing them into your home. ... It can be unnerving.”

He said “civilized conditioning,” society’s pressure to be polite, cordial and undemanding, works against people in such situations.

“When somebody means to do you harm,” Siciliano said, “they are going to be doing a number of different things to position you in a way that will make you that much more vulnerable.”

At first contact, many Realtors will ask where a new client works, then call and verify it. Realtors may also go online to verify the person’s identity. Likewise, a homeowner should show his house by appointment only and get the person’s information — name, address, phone number and workplace — up front.

At realty offices, the receptionist often jots down the license plate number, make and model of a new client’s vehicle. A homeowner can do the same.

Contact Summerlin/Summerlin South View reporter Jan Hogan at jhogan@viewnews.com or 702-387-2949.