If it were me, and I was living at the house, I'd want a call prior to showing, although not necessarily an appointment. With a call you have advance knowledge, and if the timing is truly inconvenient, the ability to say "not now".

An appointment can mean anything though... 24 hours (suicidal in a bad market), an hour, two hours, 15 minutes.

As far as your situation: dogs on premise will eliminate some viewers completely. There are people who will not entertain viewing a house that has animals and some that might view a house with animals but are apprehensive about dogs. Are the animals crated? Do they bark excessively when strangers are in the house?

Did you have any offers last year? Is your market slow (or dead)? Do you plan on using a lockbox this time?

Even vacant houses have appointments made to view. The amount of time needed is the key. In your case, I would put the lock box on but say appointments need to be confirmed due to dogs.(having a lock box on doesnt mean people just come into your home without notice and/or an appointment) Then LEAVE the house with the dogs during the appointment.(even a few minutes before if you can. (Go for a walk or whatever, I have heard many sellers say their dogs love the house being on the market, they get walked alot more :) Its a mistake to be home during a showing, most people don't feel comfortable when the owners are home and you want them to feel comfortable in your house. Also, a lot of realtors won't show a house that has dogs if they are home and the owner is not.

Had two offers last year --- neither made it far. First offer received, I accepted = end of story (buyers suposedly didn't realize the significance of an offer - thought it was a way to feel out the situation). Bizarre. Second offer receive, accepted = end of story again. These buyers decided that they didn't want to be "house poor". Don't you think about that BEFORE you make the offer? I did not receive any signed offers, and did not sign acceptance ... not that I'd "go after them" anyway.

The central Florida market DIED soon after listing. Still dead. Since I didn't have to sell, I just removed it from the market after tiring from all the showings, etc. With the drop in possible profit and inconvenience to my life - decided to wait until .... until I had another reason to sell... That itch to make life change is raising it's head again and I'm trying to decide when to put it back on the market.

Dogs are still a problem though. The greyhounds are pretty clean (no doggie odor) and don't bark - but their crates are HUGE! I can't take them to Doggie Day Care because one of them has a track/racing injury that is aggrivated by jumping in/out of the SUV (and just general increase in activity). So I don't know what I'm going to do. I just can't imagine putting on a lock-box with them inside. I'd worry to death about an unresponsible, overzealous or naive realtor going into my house thinking they can predict & control the situation. My dogs would be gone in a heartbeat.

Will a neighbor doggie-sit during the day?

Otherwise, I think you'll need to have that hour notice. You may lose a few showings but, ultimately, I don't really believe it'll be the reason if you house doesn't sell. But, having two large dogs running loose inside 'may' be a reason it doesn't sell...so the appointment seems to me to be the lesser of the choices.

Good luck!

/tricia

You can still get a lock box AND show by appointment. Just get one that you can remove (that is what I did) when you are not showing. It has given me some piece of mind. I certainly don't want anyone just coming in without an appointment when I am not aware of it.

I would never leave an animal out running through a home during a showing. For their safety and your piece of mind, it is important to find a good place for them. If I had done that yesterday one or all of my cats would have left the house. We had a showing yesterday and the agent who came left the door wide open for about 10 minutes for her clients who were probably discussing their last viewing and still outside. Anyway, I saw it all from across the street at my neighbors and was glad my 3 kitties were all in their crates. I left them in their crates in the basement and took the dog with me.

Do you have a neighbor who could help you out? If not, is it possible now that it is nice weather to leave their crates outside somewhere where you can leave them during the showing. Perhaps under a covered patio or porch if you can't walk them would be best.

"You can still get a lock box AND show by appointment. Just get one that you can remove (that is what I did) when you are not showing. It has given me some piece of mind. I certainly don't want anyone just coming in without an appointment when I am not aware of it."

I'm being dense ... I really haven't seen a lock box to know how they work. I can't see how a lock box help me in this situation. If I remove the box when not showing (i.e. when I'm working and the dogs are loose), how does it benefit this situation? I can grasp how it helps if you take it off to stop someone from coming in unannounced .... I wish I had someone to watch my dogs -- but I really don't. And I can't leave them outside due to the FL heat! Maybe putting an A/C unit in the shed? Hummmmmmm Well, after getting the junk out of it --- and maybe a few mice???

If you have some ideas, please - let 'em fly!

Man - if I really wanted to see a house, I'd wait an hour for an appointment - even a day.

funkill -- yes it would be ideal to be able to wait an hour or even a day to see a home, but I can tell you from being relocated frequently that transferees often do not have that extra time. We were always on tight time constraints and sometimes coming back in an hour would work, sometimes not. If we would have been told come back the next day, if there were other homes on the market that interested us, we'd pass on seeing yours.

The first two times we listed a home we'd request 24 hours notice. That went out the window quickly when buyers and their agents would show up on the doorstep with no notice. The last few times we listed, we just put in the listing "call first" before using lockbox. The idea was to make the home as accessible as possible to as many buyers as possible. However, we never did have to deal with pets, but we did have to deal with 4 children.

I have the combination to my lock box and so I can remove it for MY piece of mind. I show by appointment.. but I leave the house so they can come through without me or my dog there. The lockbox has a code on it that my Realtor gives out to the Realtors that show my house. When they open it up it has a key to my house in it that they use to get in. They put it back in the lock box when they leave and so far they have all left their cards to let me know that they have been here. I just wish they would give my agent feedback from the house showings... after doing all that cleaning it would be nice to have them call back with feedback. Geeeze!

I suppose you have no covered shaded area for the dogs? If they have water on their crate they should be fine for an hour or so I would think. But then again I live in the NE and it is not as hot here as down there. No garage? Probably not due to being in FLA.

Otherwise, I think you'll need to have that hour notice. You may lose a few showings but, ultimately, I don't really believe it'll be the reason if you house doesn't sell. But, having two large dogs running loose inside 'may' be a reason it doesn't sell...so the appointment seems to me to be the lesser of the choices.

For me after the flea problem I had in the one house I bought, I doubt I would buy a house that an animal lived in. I don't know, depends on the house and animal.

As a buyer, yes, I appreciate the dogs being removed or put in cages. I almost hurt myself & a small dog in a house we walked a year ago. It kept getting not only under my foot but my cane. Had we known there was a non crated dog we would have passed.

Man - if I really wanted to see a house, I'd wait an hour for an appointment - even a day.

Depends on the house. There are so many houses for sale that a buyer doesn't have to wait. There are more then enough sellers willing to let someone come in with no notice, I am one of them. After what I went through as a buyer, we won't not show our house if someone asks. If you've been in this situation before, you would understand.

There was one house by me, I did not know we had a set appointment, we were maybe 10 minutes late because my daughter had an emergency at school, the seller left and said tough crap. My agent couldn't get the other agent to get her to come back. We did not go back. Don't think they've sold.

Drove an hour away, a different county to find the owner not home, another scheduled appointment, it was the last house we were seeing. Agent calls their agent.. oops, family emergency be back in an hour. We drive around for an hour and went back.. still no owner. Call the agent again, who talks to owner, sorry, how about tomorrow. We tell her we are done in this area and thanks anyway, then drive the hour home. Her house was very appealing as it had a bump out but I wasn't sold on the area. Had she been home, she probably would have had a sale as it was a model I loved. Thankful for me she wasn't home as I did get confirmation on the schools after and decided not to move there due to that.

We've driven by houses to see other houses with signs that never came up in my search. We would park & call the listing agent, we never got into any of them due to no lock box. Some we couldn't get in touch with the agent. Took us 7 months but we finally found one.

Anyway, isn't it late to be listing the house in FL? Didn't the busy time just end? Most of the snow birds are coming back home from what my hubby's grandma tells me, she lives in Coral Gables.

Hopefully you will figure it out, we all do. You learn what will work for you and what won't.

funkill -- yes it would be ideal to be able to wait an hour or even a day to see a home, but I can tell you from being relocated frequently that transferees often do not have that extra time. We were always on tight time constraints and sometimes coming back in an hour would work, sometimes not. If we would have been told come back the next day, if there were other homes on the market that interested us, we'd pass on seeing yours.

There is a post in the NJ section of City data where someone from another state has been here twice and each time did not see anything, then went back to the office to pull more; so she was seeing on short notice as well. Someone not able to show would have been passed over in this case as well.

I have the combination to my lock box and so I can remove it for MY piece of mind.

In my area, I think it's a universal number or each office has a number that's programed into the lock box. Someone from a different area wanted to see our house and I had to be home for the showing to let them in because they did not have an access code.

I wasn't aware that home owners were allowed to know codes. Was it a number you picked or your agent gave you? How do they know you won't try to use that code on other lock boxes? Just asking because now I worry that someone that is not an agent might break into my house because they've been given a code.. not saying you would, but the liability is huge if home owners had lock box codes. Thankfully we have alarm assurance....

Wow - never considered people having that tight of a schedule... guess it shows that I haven't ever relocated (yet) or, for that matter, done much moving!

I think the idea of a season in this area (for attracting snowbirds), is more with regard to the condo's and beach communities. And right now, they're a dime a dozen. I grew up beach side - TONS of snow's. Not so much here in this town.

I guess I am a sucker for historic homes and waterfront. In this county, there's few historic homes in desireable areas....so, I figured that, for one being available (and under a million plus), they'd be dying to see mine in the riverfront area. My realtor said it was the hottest property he ever listed --- but it didn't do me much good in the long run, did it? I asked if it was overpriced - he said no. That I just needed someone willilng to compromise size for location.

roselvr: I have the code to our lock box and why shouldn't I? It is on my house. I should be able to control whether I want someone just coming up to my house and getting in without an appointment. I am not sure they use this same code on other homes and I have no desire to try it.

My house viewings are by appointment only with no open house for the neighbors. I have been to another open house recently of a house priced in my range to check it out. There were too many people in there for them to control. It was funny bc the people that were there were either neighbors or people who were already selling a house or considering selling a house on the market. The one thing I did note was that I was able to walk through the entire house without being observed. I have things in my home that are here until we move and I have no desire to have unaccompanied people running through my house. I packed up as much as I could, especially very small things that could disappear, but there are still some valuable pieces in my china cabinets, etc.

In addition another thing to consider if you hold an open house is that you can have anyone come through your open house and case your place for later. I have no desire to have my home robbed at a later date bc of an open house.

I will be having a Realtor's open house luncheon to be held here that hopefully will generate some appropriate interest and comments.

In my area the lockboxes are electronic. There is no key pad on the lockbox itself. Each agent has an electronic key pad that has a unique code, which is either inserted into the lockbox or sends a signal to the lockbox. It wouldn't be possible for the homeowner to remove the lockbox.

Here is a link that might be useful: Supra Key Boxes

In our area each lockbox has it's own code. When we were driving around and saw a place we wanted to see, our agent would call the listing agent's office and ask if we can see the house. If it was okay, they would send the lockbox code to her phone (once they verified who she is and looked up the number). She couldn't even get the code from the office, they would send it separately, which seems pretty secure to me.

Of course if we were making appointments our agent got these ahead of time, I'm not sure of that process though.

Going on 18 years in the RE biz, "showing by appointment only", for an occupied or vacant property is the way to go, to have a separate log besides the SUPRA log for agent verification.
It only takes a phonecall to set an appointment. Depending on a sellers circumstances, most can be shown within 5 to 30 minutes, some might need an hour if there are many kids and pets.

Terriks, thanks, that's the one (blue) we have. I've never even looked at it as it's on a bench in our yard & blends in with the bench really well. I'll have to remember to go out and look at it before it gets removed.

roselvr: I have the code to our lock box and why shouldn't I? It is on my house. I should be able to control whether I want someone just coming up to my house and getting in without an appointment. I am not sure they use this same code on other homes and I have no desire to try it.

I understand where you are coming from but how would you feel if it was a universal number (I'm not an agent & don't have a clue about lock boxes except for what I've heard) and knew that if your agent was giving you the code that she might have given other clients the same code, because after all, they want to take it off as well.. you go out, put the lock box back on and return home to find your house cleaned out. It doesn't worry you that your agent might be giving others that same code you are using?

Maybe one of the agents here can shed some light on other lock boxes used.

Wow - never considered people having that tight of a schedule... guess it shows that I haven't ever relocated (yet) or, for that matter, done much moving!

When I 1st started buying/selling, it wasn't something I thought about either until it happened to me.

I think the idea of a season in this area (for attracting snowbirds), is more with regard to the condo's and beach communities. And right now, they're a dime a dozen. I grew up beach side - TONS of snow's. Not so much here in this town.

Since I don't know FL, I don't know the areas people retire to, but since I'm from NJ, and do know people that get away for the winter, I could see people from NJ going there in the winter to look at houses. The last time you were listed, was it after the winter or during?

I guess I am a sucker for historic homes and waterfront. In this county, there's few historic homes in desireable areas....so, I figured that, for one being available (and under a million plus), they'd be dying to see mine in the riverfront area. My realtor said it was the hottest property he ever listed --- but it didn't do me much good in the long run, did it? I asked if it was overpriced - he said no. That I just needed someone willilng to compromise size for location.

Did you get much feedback last time?
We had no luck last year either; the feedback was always good, so a house that our agent said should have sold quickly, did not. Hopefully you will get lucky this time.

"The last time you were listed, was it after the winter or during?" (how the heck do you get the itallics for quotes?)

It was actually on the market almost 8 months ... Feb - Sept. All the feedback was good --- only (continued) negative was the single bath. Oh - and a couple people wanted to have a garage door put on the carport. Might be more trouble to enclose than just adding a door - though it is a CBC structure???) To be honest, I thought a single bath was going to be trouble for me too. But it hasn't - shock. The family before me had 2 children and there wasn't even a single outlet in the bath. I did remedy that!

Zoe52 - you can't leave greyhounds outside unattended. There are a myriad of reasons, but the main reason is that they do not tolerate extremes well for a long period of time.

Funkill - I don't know if you know of any other greyhound owners in the area that might be able to keep your hounds during the day. If not, there's a really large group of greyhound owners/enthusiasts over at greytalk . com. If I lived closer (I'm in IL), I'd let you bring your dogs over. They could help my two greyhounds hold down the sofa!

(how the heck do you get the itallics for quotes?)

Have a look here
Look at the 4th entry titled Text Tags, it is 5th down for italic, bold is over that.

It was actually on the market almost 8 months ... Feb - Sept.

Ask your agent if the market was busier in Oct - Jan. They should be able to tell you if there is a busier time for people coming out of state.

All the feedback was good --- only (continued) negative was the single bath. Oh - and a couple people wanted to have a garage door put on the carport. Might be more trouble to enclose than just adding a door - though it is a CBC structure???) To be honest, I thought a single bath was going to be trouble for me too. But it hasn't - shock. The family before me had 2 children and there wasn't even a single outlet in the bath. I did remedy that!

For us, we are finding it hard with only 2 bathrooms, imagine that. I grew up with 1 and never had 2 until 10 years ago. I got spoiled at my dad's house with 3. Can't wait until we get to our new house we'll have 3 with a 4th going in the basement after we move in.

In our local market for an occupied home, the MLS says to call ahead and gives a timeframe if it's needed (call ahead 2 hrs, or whatever). Around here, the rule of thumb is if you call ahead as requested and don't hear back within 30 mins, it's okay to just go on in.

If pets are around, it usually says on the MLS something like, "don't let dogs out", or "pets in basement", so the potential buyers are aware up front of that info and it's not a surprise.

The attitude around here is if you want to sell your house, the seller should be prepared for the showings and the inconveniences that go with it.

And, yes..."appointment only" showings are generally placed near the bottom of the go-see stack unless the house meets exact/specific criteria of the buyer. Buyers want accessibility.

In my experiences, Buyers would rather be able to see the house with dogs around & know pets are present beforehand than having to wait and make a special appointment.

When we sold our house in the Poconos of PA we also had an appointment requirement. Usually we wanted a notice that the agent would be bring buyers by in about an hour. I understand buyers will be looking at multiple homes and the good agents would set up a schedule, and notify the homeowners. But the nitwit agents in the Poconos couldn't figure how to use their cell phones if the buyers weren't coming! "We're scheduled to come by between 2 and 3 pm". And they never show! I called numerous realty offices and told them their city transplant agents should learn courtesy! One seller's agent told a couple to "just drop by" and look at the house! We didn't even let them in.

Just a note here: all owners think their dogs don't have an odor. It's kind of like not being able to smell your own B.O. Trust me, they don't make a dog that doesn't leave some kind of odor.

Oh my - I'm so offended! LOL

I've asked visitors (and realtor) if they "smell" dog - and they've told me "no". They know why I'm asking - so I gotta believe it is not a concern. I'm thankful for all wood floors and leather furniture. Quilts get washed weekly and everything else gets wiped down too - not for smell as much as plain cleanliness. I know there is an odor when they're WET -- nothing like a wet dog, huh? I am going to believe the dog bowls are the main "give away" and I never did resort to removing them from the view of buyers. Maybe I should re-visit that tactit too? Until recently, I didn't know people would negate a home based on it having pets at one time or another.... wonder what they'd think about my little tenure with mice? Ahhhhhhh I guess I won't mention that in the future.

So, I'm still trying to figure out how to accommodate the dogs and open showings. So far, it's still looking like I'll need 1 hr advanced notice to show.... :-(

I spent the weekend taking some closet stuff to storage - getting ready to put it on the market again. I don't anticipate a quick sell - but I got to get something going!

Maybe I shouldn't have been so general about the "all dogs" comment. Sounds like you keep up with your cleaning. I'm just used to hearing this "my dog doesn't smell" from people while I can clearly smell their dog! LOL, my MIL used to have this dog that I was sure was farting and she told me it was just his breath! Don't even get me going on what the area smelled like around his doggie bed! Sorry to have generalized and good luck on selling the house.

If the seller has a disability & uses a wheelchair I would hope the realtor would plan to show by appt only.