When a person wants to sell his or her house and hires a real estate agent for help, the agent might recommend the use of a lockbox for the home. A lockbox is a small box that contains a key for the front door of a house, and this box is placed on the front door or near it. Real estate agents are the only people who can access the boxes. If you are not sure if you want to allow this, you should evaluate the pros and cons of it before you make your decision.

The pros of having a lockbox

The key benefit of agreeing to place a lockbox on your house is that it will make viewings so much easier for everyone involved. Without a lockbox, you would either have to leave your door unlocked, be present to open it, or have your own agent there to unlock the door. This could end up as quite a hassle for your agent and anyone else involved. With a lockbox, everyone that needs to get in your house for showings will have the ability to do so.

In some cases, lockboxes contain software that records all the activity that takes place, and this is a great type to have. This means that it will record who opens it and the time in which it was opened. This is a great way to keep control over who enters your home, and it can alleviate questions if any arise about whether or not a showing took place.

You should also know that most listings state that before showings take place, the agent must call the listing agent to approve it. This means that agents will not simply enter whenever they feel like it. Instead, they can and will only enter in your house when they have an approved showing.

The cons of having a lockbox

The only downside to having a lockbox is that you have no control over what agents come to your home; however, you can solve this problem. If there is a particular agent that you do not trust in your home, you could tell your agent about this. If this agent wants to show your house, you could require that your agent attend the showing too.

If you would like to learn more about lockboxes, or if you are ready to list your house, you can do so by contacting a real estate agency in your town.