Question: Is it okay for real estate agents to show homes right now?

Answer passage (source: UK):
page_title: Guidance Government advice on home moving during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
section_headers: Advice to industry
Developers and new build sales
section_content: Developers can continue with sales during this period but should ensure that
their sales teams follow the government’s safer working
guidance. Developers should inform consumers and their own staff about their
procedures, so that they are safe throughout the sales process.

Where possible, developers should promote virtual viewings.
Where physical viewings do take place, including visits to show homes, these should be by appointment with one household visiting one property at a time.
Developers should clean surfaces between viewings.
For new reservations and contracts, developers should work with conveyancers to ensure contracts take account of the risks posed by coronavirus, including building in flexibility in case move dates need to change as a result of someone falling ill with coronavirus or needing to self-isolate.
Developers should do what they can to support anyone with coronavirus symptoms or self-isolating, and those they are in chain with, to agree a new date.


Reviewer feedback on this answer:
This offers guidance about what to do to have safe showings of property, but this focuses on developers.
This response seems to be focused on developers instead of real estate agents but the bullet points are still regarding showing houses so this all seems to be relevant to the question

Reviewer ratings:
Acceptable
Acceptable

Answer passage (source: UK):
page_title: Guidance Government advice on home moving during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
section_headers: Advice to industry
Estate agents
section_content: Estate agents can open for business but should consider how and when to reopen
their premises given government guidance on safer
working. Estate agents should inform customers and their own staff about
their procedures, so that they are safe throughout the sales process.

Agents should ask whether any party is showing symptoms or has been asked to self-isolate before going ahead with any viewing, or visits to offices.
Agents should operate using an appointment system for visits to their offices and when conducting viewings.
Agents should not carry out any open house viewings.
Agents should strongly encourage clients to view properties virtually in the first instance and then only physically inspect properties which they have a strong interest in.
Agents can accompany physical viewings and seek to maintain a minimum of 2 metres distance from others wherever possible. Where social distancing is not possible and the visit is within an enclosed space, they should consider wearing a face covering in line with government guidance.
Where they do not accompany the visit, they should make sure that both buyers and sellers clearly understand how the viewing should be conducted safely.
Agents should not drive clients to appointments.
All parties viewing a property should wash their hands with soap and water (or hand sanitiser if not available) immediately after entering the properties, with internal doors opened and surfaces having been wiped down before they enter. Separate towels or paper towels should be used if possible and washed or disposed of safely after use.
Agents should do what they can to promote flexibility when arranging move dates, for example advising clients to ensure contracts have explicit terms to manage the timing risks presented by coronavirus.
Agents should work with their clients and other agents to broker a new date to move where sales are due to complete and one of the parties falls ill with coronavirus or has to self-isolate.
Agents should ensure that any keys are appropriately cleaned before handover.


Reviewer feedback on this answer:
There are lots of details about how to safely show a home and do business as a real estate agent.
This is an excellent response. It answers the question in the first sentence saying they can show houses. It then goes on to list a ton of bullet points about how to do so safely

Reviewer ratings:
Excellent
Excellent

Answer passage (source: UK):
page_title: Guidance Government advice on home moving during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
section_headers: Advice to the public
4. Property searches and surveys
section_content: More detail on progressing the individual elements of the home buying and
selling or rental process and how this applies to different groups is set out
in the next section.
Your legal representative should be able to carry out searches on your
property online in order to progress your transaction and you can contact them
to discuss likely timescales.
Your surveyor can undertake surveys of the property you wish to purchase.
There are no restrictions on the types of survey that can be carried out and
you should talk to your surveyor to understand the most appropriate type of
survey for the home you intend to purchase.
On custom and self build projects, surveyors can visit plots you wish to
purchase and undertake valuations to support the release of staged payment
mortgages.

Surveyors should not enter a property where a member of the household is showing symptoms of coronavirus or self-isolating.
Where possible we encourage inspections to take place by appointment only, with one person visiting the property at any time. Surveyors should follow government guidance for professionals working in other people’s homes and guidance on social distancing.
If your home is being surveyed, you should ensure the surveyor has access to all the parts of the property they need to inspect, and make efforts to minimise contact with the surveyor, for example by staying in another room whilst they are inspecting your home.


Reviewer feedback on this answer:
There are only details about surveys and nothing about viewing a property.
This response is more focused on surveying and inspecting the home where the question was asking about real estate agents showing the home so this is not quite the same thing

Reviewer ratings:
Bad
Could be Improved