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On the market · 6 steps · free · the same words a Keighbor seller reads
Why this page existsNobody tells a seller what to do while strangers walk through their house.
Key takeaways
You have a booking method, a screening ask, and a log ready to go.
Every showing has verified buyer credentials saved in the room.
Access is controlled per showing and you can revoke it instantly.
The home is at photo quality and you and the pets are out.
The open house happened, you have names on the sign-in sheet, and you got some feedback.
You have written feedback from most showings and a running sense of how the market is responding.
1
Set your showing process
You're done when: You have a booking method, a screening ask, and a log ready to go.
A predictable, written showing process helps with two things at once: your safety, and your calendar. Decide the rules before the first request arrives rather than answering each one from scratch.
How to do it
Decide your showing windows - weekday evenings and weekend daytimes are typical - and set them as your availability in the room.
Publish the booking link. Buyers or their agents book directly and everything lands on one calendar.
Require the buyer's contact details and either a pre-approval letter or proof of funds before you confirm a showing.
Decide whether you will only show to buyers accompanied by their own agent. Plenty of sellers do.
Keep a showing log: date, buyer or agent name, contact, and any feedback afterwards.
Worth knowing
Showing to an unverified stranger alone carries real safety considerations. Asking a friend to be there, or requiring an agent escort, are both normal.
Lock up valuables, medications, and personal documents before any showing. This is standard practice, not paranoia.
Consistency keeps your calendar manageable and reads as professional to buyer agents.
What it costs
Free
Where to check
Your own showing log
2
Vet buyers before showings
You're done when: Every showing has verified buyer credentials saved in the room.
Before confirming a showing, decide what contact or qualification information you'll request and apply the same process consistently. Follow fair-housing requirements and get professional guidance when needed.
How to do it
For financed buyers, ask for a lender pre-approval letter dated within the last 30 days.
For cash buyers, ask for proof of funds: a bank letter on letterhead, in the buyer's name, showing a sufficient available balance.
If the buyer has an agent, get the agent's name, brokerage, and license number.
Save the verified documents in the room so you can check them any time.
If something feels off, asking for a video call first or having a friend present are both reasonable.
Worth knowing
Pre-approval means the lender verified income, assets, and credit. Pre-qualification is self-reported. That is a big difference and the words look similar.
Requiring proof of funds is standard practice, not an insult.
A buyer without documentation is not necessarily unqualified - they may just not be ready. Ask them to come back once they have it.
What it costs
Free
Where to check
The lender's letterhead and a working phone number on it
3
Use temporary access, not permanent codes
You're done when: Access is controlled per showing and you can revoke it instantly.
Temporary, revocable access lets you control exactly who can enter and when. A permanent code hands that control away and you cannot take it back.
How to do it
Use the lockbox you already have. If it is a manual one, rotate the combination between showings.
If it is a smart lockbox, issue a single-use or time-limited code per showing.
Change codes after an open house, or any time a code has been shared widely.
Never use a permanent garage or door code you plan to keep after selling.
If you have a smart lock, check the access log now and then.
Worth knowing
Reset every code at closing regardless of what you used during showings. That is standard practice.
If a code leaks or you simply feel unsure, changing it takes thirty seconds.
An access log is the difference between knowing who came in and assuming.
What it costs
Included with the lockbox
Where to check
Your smart lock or lockbox access log
4
Reset the home before each showing
You're done when: The home is at photo quality and you and the pets are out.
A reset before each showing keeps the home at photo quality for every single buyer, not just the first one.
How to do it
Run the morning-of sweep: counters clear, beds made, blinds open, lights on.
Empty the bins, do a final floor pass, and hide pet bowls and beds.
Set a comfortable temperature, around 68 to 72 degrees.
Open the windows briefly for fresh air beforehand, and skip heavy scent products.
Leave, and take the pets. Buyers linger longer and speak more freely when the owner is not home.
Worth knowing
Lights on and blinds open makes rooms feel larger and warmer.
Fresh air beats artificial scent almost every time.
The sweep bin from photo day earns its keep here.
What it costs
Free
Where to check
Walk in through the front door as though you were the buyer
5
Consider hosting an open house
You're done when: The open house happened, you have names on the sign-in sheet, and you got some feedback.
An open house concentrates buyer traffic into one window and gives neighbours a chance to walk through - and neighbours are the people most likely to know somebody looking.
How to do it
Schedule the first Saturday or Sunday after going live. Noon to 3pm is the standard window.
Announce it on the listing - most portals have an open-house flag - on your yard sign, on social, and in a Nextdoor or Facebook post.
Put directional signs at nearby intersections a few hours before. Check local sign rules first.
Set out flyers, a sign-in sheet asking for name, email, phone, and agent if any, and something light to drink.
Consider having someone else there with you.
Worth knowing
Open houses generate offers, and they also draw browsers and curious neighbours. Both are fine.
Asking visitors what they thought, and writing it down, gets you real-time feedback you will not get any other way.
Change your lockbox code afterwards.
What it costs
$20-60 for directional signs and refreshments
Where to check
Your local sign ordinance, before you place directional signs
6
Gather showing feedback
You're done when: You have written feedback from most showings and a running sense of how the market is responding.
Showing feedback is data on how buyers are responding to your home and your price. It is the only feedback you get before an offer arrives.
How to do it
Send a short message to each showing agent or buyer within 24 hours asking for any feedback.
Ask three or four focused questions: overall impression, price against perceived value, any dealbreakers, and likelihood of an offer.
Track the responses in your showing log.
Treat one opinion as a data point and a consistent pattern across several showings as a real signal.
If the same concern keeps coming up - a dark kitchen, a dated bathroom, an awkward layout - decide whether to address it or whether the price already accounts for it.
Worth knowing
Feedback is data. What you do with it is yours to decide.
No showings at all is itself feedback, and it usually points at the price or the photos.
Ask within 24 hours. After that people have seen three other houses.
What it costs
Free
Where to check
Your own showing log, read as a whole rather than one entry at a time
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Every step of a home sale has a guide this long behind it. Your room opens them one at a time as you reach them, and whatever you work out gets saved into the step.
