New State Regulations Affects Real Estate Activities

Starting today (Friday, November 6th, 2020), new executive orders by Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker go into effect that impact real estate activities.

COVID-19 Order #54 limits indoor gatherings at private residences to no more than 10 people. This means that real estate brokers and salespersons throughout the Commonwealth must ensure that open houses, showings, broker open houses, inspections (and any other real estate activities at private residences) are limited to a maximum of 10 people in the house at a time.

This Order also requires organizers of gatherings to report known positive COVID-19 cases to the local health department and cooperate with contact tracing efforts. Violations of this gathering order are subject to a $500 fine for each person over the limit. To comply with this, we recommend keeping a log of attendees at real estate activities (open house, showings, broker open house, inspections) of those that attend with contact information.

The Governor also issued COVID-19 Order #55 which requires all people over the age of 5 to wear face coverings in public, regardless of spacing. Public locations include any place open to the public, which would include open houses. Other public locations include grocery stores, pharmacies, and other retail stores; public transportation and ride-sharing vehicles; public streets and ways; and any location that hosts indoor or outdoor events or performances.

We recommend that you continue to require mask wearing at any in-person real estate activities, and have facemasks on hand to provide if needed.