Real Estate Agent Safety: 15 Tips You Should Practice

Like any good habit you try to develop, keeping yourself safe on the job requires you to change some behaviors and practice new ones. Whether you’re posting to social media, meeting a client or closing down an open house, there is always a need to reduce the risk of personal harm. In many cases, safety precautions not only protect you, the agent, but can protect the homeowner as well.

Here are 15 safety tips real estate agents should practice.

1. Never reveal any personal information — such as your home phone number, private cell phone number (if it’s separate from your work cell phone) or home address — on any public-facing materials such as signs, flyers or social media posts.
2. If you work with a team, keep an office document listing the make, model, year, color and license plate number of every agent’s vehicle. Store this document in a central, online location so that it can be quickly accessed if needed.
3. When setting out on the road, always let your office and at least one other person know where you are at all times and when you expect to be there.
4. Always keep your keys and cell phone with you. Make sure location services on your cell phone are activated.
5. Only conduct private showings if you've met the client in your office beforehand, and ask them to provide their name, two forms of identification and vehicle information.
6. When hosting an open house in an unfamiliar area, drive through the neighborhood first and identify any safety concerns you or potential buyers might have.
7. Don’t drive or ride with any client you don’t know.
8. Whenever possible, do not enter a vacant property or conduct an open house by yourself. When an open house is over, you and your co-host should double-check that everyone has departed.
9. Have exit strategies: Know all the ways in and out of a home before you visit or show it, and keep those doors unlocked.
10. Register every buyer who attends your open house and use a digital sign-in system so that the information is stored immediately and remotely.
11. Let clients lead the way when touring a home and stay in the doorway when they enter a room.
12. Don’t wear expensive jewelry.
13. Put your bag or briefcase in the trunk of your car during showings.
14. Learn basic self-defense techniques and attend local safety courses when they’re offered.
15. Listen to your instincts. If you have any uneasy feelings about a situation, leave immediately. Nothing is more important than your safety — not even the thought of offending a client.

Personal safety isn't something to be taken lightly; it outranks manners or deference towards others every time. Use common sense and always be aware of your surroundings. Make sure your entire business supports safety initiatives so that everyone — colleagues and clients alike — can stay out of harm’s way.