Valley Realtors on edge after two open house attacks

PHOENIX — Valley Realtors are taking precautions after two attacks during open houses in the East Valley.

Trudy Moore with HomeSmart said both Realtors and private sellers alike need to be smart when allowing strangers to enter a home.

“The biggest tip is don’t do it alone,” she said. “It’s best to partner-up with maybe another real estate agent, a lender, or mortgage person there.”

Moore said if they can’t find someone to show the home with them, to introduce themselves to a neighbor or stay outside the home while the prospective buyer is looking around.

“I think the main thing is they need to go with their gut,” she said. “If something feels wrong, if they’re not comfortable they need to remove themselves from that situation.”

Moore recommended checking the person’s identification before showing them a home.

The National Association of Realtors said two agents may have been attacked by the same person in the past two weeks.