To think it’s normal to take your kids to a house viewing?

[HouseMover2024]

Friend is trying to sell her house and has taken issue with people bringing their children. In her view, they should arrange childcare and it’s inappropriate for them to bring children. If they do bring their kids she thinks they should be left in the car with parents taking turns.

Friend doesn’t have children. She can’t relate to the fact that childcare outside of work time isn’t particularly easy to find.

Part of her reasoning is she has animals she says it’s not practical to remove and is worried a child might get bitten.

I have an opposing view and actually have taken my young children to viewings. I ensure they are respectful and take their shoes off/don’t touch anything. But it’s not always practical to arrange childcare especially at weekends. When my home has been on the market I remove my pets for viewings.

Sorry?

I’ve only encountered one vendor who wasn’t accommodating and ultimately we didn’t view and she blocked a potential sale.

Depends on the child doesn't it. Can you imagine if your child started misbehaving? I'm with your friend!

“I ensure they are respectful and take their shoes off/don’t touch anything.”

^ That’s the key really isn’t it.

If your friend has animals I can see why she’s cautious given the general hysteria surrounding pets.

How can you even take in the house if you have to watch a child or children.

@fleurneige pmsl at allowing a child a say in buying a house. Insane comment of the day 🥳🏆bravo. Is the child contributing financially to this purchase? 🤣 Followed by putting the animals in a car for viewings - RSPCA anyone.

When selling my house my dog has always been taken out for a walk while viewings took place. Less stressful for him and everyone else
Not an issue for me if children came with parents on viewings.
when buying I have often taken grandchildren on viewings as we provided a lot of childcare - nobody minded but they were v well behaved and knew not to touch things or open cupboards for example - often when seeing houses where children lived they were offered duplo or whatever toys were downstairs to play with

The fact you can't get your children to walk around a property not touching ornaments or fires, is I'd say unusual.

I wouldn't be taking time off work during school hours to view a property, smacks of awkward vendor and no one wants to enter into a transaction with one of those!

As someone who's just bought and sold I agree @HouseMover2024 , if you want to sell your bloody make the house available to be seen and don't put restrictions on viewings. I was gobsmacked at one vendor who was there WITH HER DOG for the viewing, although the EA was doing the actual viewings, and in conversation she freely admitted that she'd carved the house in half, so this was the half she was selling and she now lived next door! Why the fuck was she there then and with the dog who surely also now lived next door? Bizarre...
Make your house available to be seen and for god's sake take your dog out during a viewing. Especially if it lives next door!
And no, I'm not buying a house who's owner lives in what amounts to an annexe and who, along with dog, obviously still thinks it's her territory. No way no how madam.😂

We got a lovely house in the end, also dog living there and carefully removed for each visit.

We took our 1 child to every house viewing (about 14 viewings in total). There were no ‘no children’ rules and the estate agents were aware beforehand scarlettulip as most tend to ask who is coming.

So suggesting this is not normal appears to be incorrect.

“Can you not negotiate with your child? Do you just exclude them, if it's going to be a bit difficult?”

Yes I would 100% exclude the little bugger if they couldn’t behave. I don’t need that level of stress when viewing a house, car or making any other big purchase.

That's fair, in the end I just told the selling EA that I wouldn't accommodate anymore viewings and that they'd to wait until I'd moved out. I was still within my lease so they had no choice

I'd only take my children if I couldn't get them looked after, and even then I'd rather they stayed in the car. It's a big deal of a purchase and I would want to focus on the house and answering any questions I had.

Depends

A friend of mine had a buyer let their children rampage round the house unattended. I absolutely wouldn’t want that and would make sure any estate agent was aware.

And yes we never took our 3. Would have been impossible to concentrate.

I find it really odd people can’t concentrate with their kids. I have my small one on my hip and my eldest either holding my hand or walking through with us. Neither have caused any drama in the 10 minutes or so it takes to view the inside of a property. I’ll already have a fairly good idea of what it’s like from the photos etc and a bit of research when it was last sold etc.

DD was about two when we were last viewing houses - that was 25 years ago. Not a single person minded us bringing her along and most owners made a fuss over her, gave her treats and generally seemed delighted with her the entire time. DD bloody loved house viewings.

YANBU but if the vendor wants no children at viewings then they should say that to their agent.

More serious though is that the vendor has a dog that's known to bite and isn't securing that dog. If the dog does bite someone viewing, she risks saying goodbye to her dog and hello to a lawsuit.

Yes. The last house I viewed (and offered on) had a lady with two grown children and was selling to downsize. She said she liked the idea it was going to a new family to raise their children in. Think it was nostalgic for her.

Me too, we are both lucky, but many folks struggle as parents, and the kids are demanding on what they want, or how they behave.

myswlf and all my family and friends were lucky that we were able to manage our kids and they knew how to behave, they never required a level of supervision that prevented us thinking or concentrating on anything else.

but we all see kids running riot in public places, shopping malls, restaurants, planes, and the frazzled parents trying to cope, so I can see if that’s your situation why you’d be against bringing them. And if that’s your situation then not bringing them is the right decision.

simply we are lucky and that’s not our situation.

The estate agent was shitty with us for bring our 6 year old viewing, they didn’t tell us in advance, knew that we had said 6 year old, we have no family locally, were we meant to book a babysitter?

We viewed more property with DC in tow, they did no harm to any property and we made it a fun experience. They still point out houses that we viewed. I think people need to expect families will be viewing family homes. I didn’t mind children when receiving viewings, Dcat likely was a great host, now that we have a DDog I would remove her for a viewing.

Absolutely.

My children are a bit older and we have been house hunting for a while. I personally couldn't imagine buying a new home without their input.

Maybe I'm weird that way, but given the breakup between me and their dad and looking at downsizing and selling off the matrimonial home that my children grew up in, I think I owe it to my children to have some say on where they'll be living for the next 8-10yrs (possibly beyond). So I personally agree with you there.

I even support the idea that the dog can be kennelled if the seller wants to make viewings more inclusive and safe.

However, its otherwise up to the seller-- who they want to target for buying their home, etc., and in your shoes, I'd just let go of it. Its their investment and their choice... and otherwise, your opinion, though well intended and placed, really doesn't matter there at the end of the day unfortunately.

Us too, never met an agent or seller who took exception to a well behaved small child holding my hand. Even when older the same.

mumsnet does some times come across like they have a feeling of horror and lack of control when it comes to kids, but I guess that’s about the personal circumstances of the poster.

However, its otherwise up to the seller-- who they want to target for buying their home, etc., and in your shoes, I'd just let go of it. Its their investment and their choice... and otherwise, your opinion, though well intended and placed, really doesn't matter there at the end of the day unfortunately.

Quite. But then when your house is sat on the market, not shifting and it’s putting you under financial strain, you can’t complain!

Taking children is fine. Up to get if she wants to make obstacles and offend potential buyers, it remains her house at present so she can enforce as she wishes, it just won't go in her favour!

Yes definitely puts you on the back foot.

Obviously I would. I'd be a massive arsehole saying it's fine for my children to go if I can't get childcare, but the same doesn't apply to other people.