Centralized Showing Service or better known in the industry as CSS is an online portal for buyer’s agents to schedule the showing of your home. CSS is limited to the use of licensed real estate agents and is a service paid for by each agent through their monthly dues to the local MLS board.
How it Works-
As soon as your home is listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), your agent will add your listing to CSS. The home will then have a link for buyer’s agents to click right on the MLS listing page. This link will immediately take them to their CSS scheduler and allow them to input their specific showings desires in a request. This request is then sent to your listing agent, the seller, or another party selected by the seller. Showing approvals can be received by phone, text, or email. Once received the recipient can approve the showing with one click of a button or by responding YES to the text message. It’s really that simple!
Benefits of CSS
CSS has operators that work from 8am – 8pm daily. These operators have access to all pertinent information from the house address, to what hours you don’t want the home to be shown. Let’s say you have a toddler and her bedtime is 7:30, but you need time to feed and bath your child. Then you can instruct CSS to restrict the showings so no buyers can view your home from 6:30pm or later. CSS operators will also be able to provide lockbox location/type, notify agents about animals that you may have in your home, alarm codes, garage codes, or any special instructions you wish the showing agent to receive prior to showing the house.
CSS also emails the showing agent after the showing and asks them for feedback from the showing. Feedback is a great way for us to see what buyers are liking or not and possibly address them in the future. Receiving feedback is an important part fo the CSS package of services. Feedback can be customized to ask specific questions you may want to know about your home, such as; Do you think there needs to be interior updating? Do you believe the home is price competitively? How did you like the curb appeal? What changes is any would have to be made for you to consider buying this house? Did the pool deter you from buying this house? These sorts of questions will give the seller and their agent a better understanding of the buyer pool and specific challenges the property faces.
Once feedback is received, it can automatically be sent ot the seller as well. This will provide the seller with unaltered feedback allowing them to make consider adjustments to price and condition as needed.
