The most notable was when we waited outside for 15 minutes because someone in the house kept saying, “I’ll be right there” when I rang the bell. It was the parrot.

We always get a notice when the standard time changes…no biggee. For a long time many of my listings have been vacant…so time of showing is not an issue. That could be changing…though not at present for me.

To each his own. Personally I think encouraging clients to restrict access as a matter of course is not a good idea in this market. They can always say no on any given day to a certain time without ruling out showings.

We all know that those that say no showings after x time, or no showings between x and x for child naptime, or “Never On A Sunday” may have been OK in the hot market…but not so today.

BTW, on the older boxes a few weeks out of the year the standard time isn’t the standard time with the change to daylight savings time.

Finally, if you happen to be there outside the “normal” hours you wouldn’t be able to get into your own listing without a PDA/Smartphone. I’ve had that happen on more than one occasion.

Bottom line is I can’t imagine not having a PDA or Smartphone to control the boxes. Taking it to the MLS to change it isn’t even a close second choice.

As I said, I’m not a big fan of changing the preset times of the keybox. Reminds me of the time the agent had it preset to no earlier than 10 a.m. The place was vacant by the time it sold. The agent was off in Eastern Washington, and we had to sit outside for an hour with the home inspector and buyer client for a 9 a.m. inspection.

Easy enough to put “no showings before 10 a.m.” in the agent instructions without playing with the hardware. But if I ever find the need to have the time set differently, I’ve always lived close to the mls office. You bring the box and they set the times. When I worked at Green Lake I could walk over to the old Ravenna Office which I don’t think is there anymore. I live in Kirkland. Easy enough to shoot over to the mls office from here.

If you preset the times to other than the norm, and the owner decides to say OK to a showing outisde of those times when they get a showing call, the agent can’t get in.

More often when people want to control the times agents can and can’t get in, they also want flexibility and the option to “place keybox out” for showings. Some like to attach it on a chain with a lock that they have a key to, so they have more control. But I haven’t had an owner want to change the presets. I guess If that were a constant issue, I’d use my phone.

I’ve used several different types of keypads and entry systems over the years, but they were all Supra. I haven’t had much problem with agents not adhering to the showng instructions and trying to barge in without an appointment on an occupied property.

I’ve worked under many methods of access over 18 years, and sellers should demand the right and control of their homes moreso than the current method allows.

Any owner should be able to get the box OFF if they want to have sex, as example…

Off to do my Open House…

2. I don’t have to go to a listing to get it either, but I can get it faster (e.g. before they update) by going to the listing. Some agents might not update their key for days, and so if I’m at a listing I’ll always check it for recent showings. Also, some agents don’t leave cards occasionally, and so on a vacant listing you’ll know to check all the doors/windows when you happen to be there, rather than having to make a return trip.

I don’t find the keybox method limiting at all…in fact I find it superior to use my laptop vs. a small device for this important info. I can email it to my clients when I pull it via laptop vs a PDA device.

But, because I don’t like the smartphones, I still use a PDA instead of a smartphone for the keybox functions.