Working in real estate I come in contact with a lot of different people and I’ve been hearing about and having more brushes with COVID lately. Since the new year it hasn't been unusual to see 100+ new cases per day in Marin, so it’s inevitable that we will know more people who come down with it. COVID is becoming ubiquitous in our community and it’s obviously deadly. I’m very concerned so I’m as cautious as I can be under the circumstances.
EXAMPLE 1: Last month I was socially distanced and wearing a mask at a house I was preparing to sell and the owner had an estate sale person there. I saw them two days in a row, both times for not long and some of that time was outdoors. Unfortunately the estate sale person had a relative in long term care who recently died of COVID and she was exposed. She subsequently got very ill and tested positive too, which had us concerned for her well being as well as ours. I really didn’t spend more than a few minutes total in her vicinity and felt kind of confident I was okay. The seller got a COVID test herself as she was around the infected person a lot more, and she was negative. WHEW!
EXAMPLE 2: This week I was going to preview a house I’ve got coming on the market. There are tenants inside and a child at their daughter’s daycare got COVID. They are quarantining and hoping for the best. In the meantime I’ve asked for photos of the house so we can avoid going inside. Based on the photos and not a walk through we’ll schedule any work that we might want to do for right after they leave. Hopefully everyone is okay and we'll be able to get inside later this month.
EXAMPLE 3: Sadly a very good home inspector and all around nice person I know shared on Facebook that he has COVID. He was battling through symptoms including a 103 degree fever but not in the hospital thank God. Fortunately he’s been feeling better and his fever is gone, but he’s still got other cold symptoms. The inspector is around my age, and we aren’t young men anymore his risk is elevated.
EXAMPLE 4: I went surfing this week with a couple of friends. One is a teacher who would have been doing in class learning but one of his students tested positive.
In January of 2021 you don’t need to look far to find people with the virus. This deadly disease is all around, and yet I still don’t think people are taking the kinds of precautions with others that are necessary. Last week I showed a property off market and the buyer’s agent showed up with his client and a financial advisor. They arrived in the same car! Fortunately it seems like everyone is fine, but that’s the kind of thing that can lead to the spread, being in close proximity in a closed space for an extended period of time with someone who doesn’t know they have the virus.
It’s time to double down on precautions. The virus is real, it’s deadly and it will infect you if you give it the opportunity. Please be safe!