“The business is still happening,” said Neill. “We’re just doing it differently.”

That includes how home inspections are done.

Chris Jenks, who owns WIN Home Inspections in Creve Coeur, said the days are gone when buyers would join him on inspections, along with buyers’ in-laws and kids eager to see their new rooms.

Now, he does video sessions afterward to answer questions. He wears a mask all the time, not just in the attic or crawl spaces as he formerly did. He wants to be in the house alone.

Signing the paperwork involves a new twist too.

Security Title Insurance Agency switched to “drive-thru closings” on March 30 at its five St. Louis-area offices, said Wendy Cromer, a vice president.

Customers stay in their cars. An employee comes out with a package of documents highlighted and marked with Post-It notes where signatures are needed. When the signing is finished, the employee returns to pick up the documents and checks to make sure nothing was missed before the customer drives off.

The company is keeping a close eye on whether courthouses, specifically recorders of deeds offices, will stay open.