by Bill Powers
Inman News Service
Most people don’t want to talk about the dangers people in our industry face daily. If you don’t think ahead, you may find yourself in a dangerous or even deadly situation. During my career, I have had three friends in real estate who lost their lives. And before you men decide this message is just for women: Two of the people killed were men. Big, burly men.
In 1990, the Phoenix area was shocked by an attacker dubbed “The Real Estate Rapist.” Thirteen women were assaulted over a 10-month period. Even though police finally were successful in catching the perpetrator, fear ran high for a number of years.
The sad truth, however, is that few agents today remember what happened. And unfortunately, many agents have stopped practicing safe selling. Based on discussions with many people across the country, I fear that a day doesn’t pass when an agent hasn’t been threatened, assaulted or worse.
As a real estate professional, you and your colleagues face much higher risks because your work takes you away from the security of an office environment. You are often placed in close proximity to strangers. You are constantly finding yourself in unfamiliar surroundings. And you are multitasking while driving your car.
Here are some basic practices to keep in mind for your own safety on the job:
• Know your prospects. Be professional. Check their references. It never ceases to amaze me how many agents are afraid to ask the very questions they later are going to need to ask anyway. Think back to your last contact with someone in another profession. Before you got past the receptionist, he or she asked you for a lot of personal details. Emulate that professional conduct. Ask your prospects for information. Have them fill out a pre-printed checklist. Ask for identification for your files. People who are serious buyers will be more than happy to provide you with the information you need to do your job.
• When you meet prospects for the first time, meet them at your office, introduce them to other people and make sure they know they will be remembered by others. This practice will cause legitimate buyers to feel more at home with you and will deter anyone with malicious intent.
• Sometimes it’s not practical to get a prospect into your office. If you are meeting someone at a vacant property, arrive early. Unlock the doors and turn on the lights. Wait for the prospects outside. When they arrive, ask them to view the property at their leisure. Don’t precede them into the house. Trust your instincts. If you have any reservations, stay outside. Tell the prospects you need to make a telephone call. And you should always record license plate numbers.
• When you are driving, you are in control. When you are showing homes, never get into the prospects’ car. If they insist on driving, tell them they can follow you to the properties.
• Don’t invite trouble. Most assaults are robberies. While we all like to project an image of success, don’t make yourself a target. Leave your expensive jewelry at home. Lock your car. Pay attention to your surroundings. Have a panic plan. At my firm, agents have a code they can use to alert staff of trouble.
• Ladies, please take your photos off of your yard signs. When I was chairman of the Phoenix Safety Task Force during the rapist’s spree, detectives berated our industry. They believed some of the personal marketing used by agents was a “red flag” to perverts. And remove or re-label your home telephone number on your business cards.
• Unless you are trained in firearms, do not carry a gun. It could be used against you. There are a number of non-lethal devices that you can carry. Be sure to check your local laws regarding their use.
• Your car probably is one of the biggest threats to your safety. Real estate agents drive substantially more miles than the average person does. Concentrate on your driving. Understand that the more you drive, the higher your chances are of having an accident. Don’t unwittingly increase your risk. We REALTORS® are the worst offenders when it comes to driving and talking on a cell phone at the same time. Pull over. Nationally syndicated talk show hosts “Click and Clack” (Tom and Ray Magliozzi) have printed bumper stickers that read: “Hang Up and Drive.” They have a point.
• These ideas aren’t new to the industry, but they may be new to you. Real estate can be a very rewarding profession. Sell safely and you will have a long and prosperous career.
— Bill Powers is COO of Realty Executives International and a past-president of both the
Phoenix and Arizona associations of Realtors®.