One day last Summer I received a phone call from the Broker of another office who was trying to track down a theft which had occurred at the home of some clients his brokerage represented. It turns out, during a showing a few weeks prior to the phone call, some checks had been taken from the house and the Sellers only just realized it when one of them was cashed a few weeks later for $8,000! Fortunately, my agent and her clients had nothing to do with the theft, but it really changed my thinking as well as the advice I now give to my Sellers. Typically in the past I would always remind sellers that prior to putting their home on the market, it would be wise to put away valuable jewelery and heirlooms as well as prescription medications. But with identity theft such a common occurrence these days, I now tell them to hide all mail and financial records including checks and bank statements. Although we take precautions, it’s not impossible for even the best Realtor to be fooled by an expert con-artist. So in addition to hiding your valuables and medications, put all your personal information & mail in a locked file
