Your hours of searching and chatting to other swappers have paid off – congratulations, you might have found the perfect home! To make sure, you’ll need to have a good look around to get to know the place and the neighbourhood and make sure it’s the right move for you.
However, with the UK opening up again and lockdowns easing, we know many people are still concerned about the risk of catching COVID, so for home viewings, it’s worth sticking to some COVID safe guidelines. Whether you are visiting a home or welcoming someone in, we’ve put together some things to think about before and during the visit.
Before the viewing
For your safety and for other people’s peace of mind, the first thing to do is to speak to one another about your boundaries and expectations before the visit. This will save any confusion and make sure everyone involved is comfortable.
If the viewing is at your home, prepare the place by sanitising surfaces, especially those people touch the most, like bannisters. Open as many windows as possible to get air flowing through the home.
When going to a viewing, where possible take your own method of transport such as walking, cycling or a car to limit exposure to others before arriving. If you need to travel on public transport, try to avoid peak times and if you’re not exempt, make sure you wear a mask when on transport.
Pack a bottle of water – you may need some and by not having to ask for a glass of water when you get there, it will limit the amount of touchpoints.
For an extra layer of confidence, it may be worth both parties taking a lateral flow test a few hours before the viewing. They are free to request and take half an hour for a result.
If you, or anyone in your household is displaying any symptoms of COVID, cancel the viewing and stay at home.
During the viewing
You’ve guessed it! Hands, Face, Space
Hands: Have hand sanitiser easily available. If it’s your home, think about putting some by the entrance.
Face: Unless you are exempt from wearing a mask, put one on, even if you’ve recently had the virus or been jabbed. Aside from protecting you, it might make the other person feel more comfortable.
Space: Where possible, try to maintain a 2-metre distance. (Although not always easy in a corridor!) If you’re able to save questions until after a look around, have a chat outside of the home.
Some people might not be quite ready or able to return to face-to-face viewings, so be open to video viewings. If you are the person viewing the house, we would recommend you still go to the area to check it out and see if it’s somewhere you’d like to live.
General Safety
Aside from COVID safety, always make sure somebody else knows you are going to or holding a viewing. If something doesn’t feel right, cancel the appointment. Following that, if any of the communications on the HomeSwapper app are threatening or make you feel uncomfortable, report the user.
Finding a new home is an exciting time and viewing it can really turn a concept into more solid imaginings. Take advantage of the summer to have comfortable viewings that keep yourself and others safe!
For more information on what to look for when on a viewing, click here.
For advice on getting your home ready for viewings on a budget, click here.
The HomeSwapper Customer Support team are always on hand to give advice and tips on how to get the most from HomeSwapper. They deal with Swappers every day and have a unique insight and view on the thousands of successful swaps that take place on HomeSwapper.
