Fannie Mae, the mortgage giant, will begin requiring electronic lock boxes on their listings. This means that showing agents will use these boxes instead of the current practice of push button lock boxes.
Some may ask, “so what?” Foreclosure properties are occasionally mistreated by real estate agents – some will or let their buyers pull up carpet and move/destroy things you wouldn’t do in a normal house. Others will show these homes without permission or go back many times without informing the agent, which is effectively breaking and entering (kinda a bid deal) and will result in an automatic $1000 fine by our MLS. Sometimes the house is left unlocked or with a bunch of lights still on. I have heard stories of a million other things that have happened that you’d never imagine in a “traditional listing.”
With electronic boxes, all accesses are logged and any issues with unauthorized entry or concerns about damage can be much more easily addressed when the agent and the seller know who were in the property and when. Plus, now that agents know they can be held accountable, I would expect fewer issues in the future.
Here is Fannie Mae’s letter regarding the new policy. Will more lenders smarten up in the coming months? I wouldn’t hold your breath but there’s always a chance!
