Five Tech Tools You Need to Host a Safe Open House

A key step to hosting a successful open house is ensuring high attendance and maximizing exposure to your listing. With an influx of visitors, it is important to take the necessary steps to keep your sellers, buyers and yourself safe. Below are five tips and tools to use during your next open house, to ensure a safe and successful event.

1. Stay charged: Keeping your phone battery at full charge is an easy step to stay safe during an open house. If your phone battery drains quickly, invest in a portable charge case or mat like one from Mophie to ensure you have full power throughout the day.

2. Keep an eye on prized possessions: During a busy open house, it can be difficult to keep an eye on everyone who passes through. Make sure your seller's prized possessions stay secure by using a wireless security camera like Canary. It syncs automatically through WiFi and you can check real-time footage directly from your smartphone. After the open house, simply pack up the device to use at your next showing.

3. Be alert when en route to your open house: Do you live in an urban market or within walking distance to your listings? Stay safe on-foot with an app like bSafe (iOS/Android, Free). If you feel threatened or unsafe, tap the "Alarm" button and the app will send your GPS location to specified contacts in your address book via text message. It also connects friends within the same area who can walk to and from a location together.

4. Monitor C02: Open houses are a great opportunity to showcase your listing's unique features, like a wood-burning fireplace or vintage cast-iron oven. When lighting a fire source, keep guests safe by monitoring carbon monoxide levels with a portable detector like those from Aeromedix. You can attach it to your keychain and choose a silent, vibrating alarm option that will let you handle the matter discretely without upsetting your visitors.

5. Know the listing's layout: Prior to your open house, walk around the property and create a virtual floorplan using an app like Home Design 3D (iOS, Free). Mark all entries and exits throughout the house so you can quickly exit the property, if needed. In addition to boosting your personal safety, creating a virtual floorplan is a great way to showcase a spacious or unique layout to potential buyers.

Get more tips for hosting a successful open house by making over your strategy here.

To view the original article, visit the HomeFinder.com blog.