In the last week we have had 4 “incidents” involving lock boxes. We thought we’d share.

First off, a lock box is something we agents use to store your keys on the property. The way it works is this: We buy a lock box, set the code and place it in a strategic location on your property. Your extra set of keys go inside. Then, when agents are booking showings, they call our front desk and make the appointment. The front desk staff then call the agent’s brokerage (to ensure that they are who they say they are) and give them the lock box code. This is in turn sent to the agent as part of the appointment confirmation.

Lock boxes come in all shapes and sizes. Some are numerical, others alphabetical. They are all analog in Toronto. Other Real Estate Boards sometimes have fancy digital ones, but we don’t.

Now that you know the basics, here are our lock box fails:

1. The lockbox was placed on the cast iron fence at the front of the property. It was basically in a snow bank. It froze shut. No showing.

2. a) The appointment confirmation gave a numerical lock box code. Upon arriving at the property there was only an alphabetical lock box to be found. Called the listing brokerage to ask where the right lock box was and the staff member had no further information as to its whereabouts. The listing agent was paged. When they returned the call they confirmed that there wasn’t a lock box and said to “go direct”. Proceeded to knock on the door until the tenant answered.

2. b) This was the second time that week that a tenant hadn’t been notified of a showing. The first time we got the key from the lock box, rang the bell and waltzed in on the surprised tenant cooking lunch. Awkward. Unprofessional. Likely scary for the lone female tenant having a quiet lunch.

3. Arrived at the house and found only a numerical lock box when the code given was alphabetical. Called listing brokerage and got it sorted while clients waited in the cold.

4. No lock box. The agent decided to keep the key at their brokerage’s front desk instead of on site. Brokerage was a 30 minute drive from the condo building. Unit for sale is a cookie-cutter condo where there are multiple similar units on the market in the immediate area. Why go out of our way when we can show an identical unit on a different floor instead?

It might seem like a small detail in listing a property, but if people can’t get in to see your place, how are they expected to buy it?

We did get a great tip from a fellow Realtor last week, though: we will now carry a small hammer to tap frozen lock boxes with. Breaks up the ice and saves our feet from the pain of kicking them!