When selling your home, you need to be fully prepared to have one or more open house events. These will invite people into your home on a casual basis, and creates the very real possibility that an interested, qualified buyer will quite literally walk into your home. You should understand how to set up your own open house even if you use a real estate agent.
A Real Estate Agent May Have Only One Open House – You May Need More
One of the disadvantages to using a real estate agent to help you sell your home is that you expect a certain level of service, that isn’t always fulfilled in reality. Many real estate agents will host a single open house event at your property, and usually very shortly after it’s listed. If you would like to have additional events, you’ll probably have to do it yourself. Real estate agents simply don’t get paid to host open house events, and are understandably reluctant to do too many of them.
Setting up your own open house will probably be needed, whether you use an agent or not. It’s always best to know how to do it.
Prepare Your Home for the Event
Before you have your open house, you need to go through your home and inspect it the way you would if you were looking to buy it.
This is a completely necessary step, and one that you should take very seriously. While you may be perfectly comfortable with various flaws in your property, a prospective buyer will not necessarily overlook them.
Be prepared to do the following:
- Your home should be clean, as in preparing for very important guests clean.
- It should also be fresh smelling. Adding floral arrangements in each room can not only help improve the scent, but can also brighten up the whole house. You can also try using scented candles, which will not only make the home smell appealing, but will also add a measure of warmth.
- Remove anything from the property that may be remotely offensive to prospects, particularly anything that might be “in your face” or political in nature.
- Make any necessary repairs, as these can become exaggerated issues for prospective buyers. Don’t overlook a repair because you think it’s minor; a door knob that doesn’t work properly or a stove burner that doesn’t light promptly could be a deal killer.
- Minimize the contents of each and every room, including your closets. If a room looks cluttered, do whatever you have to, to restore an open atmosphere. This will also help to make the rooms look bigger, as well as make it easier for buyers to imagine their own furniture in the home.
Time Your Open House to Coincide With Others In Your Neighborhood
By timing your open house to coincide with others in your neighborhood, you’ll get the benefit of any advertising they have done, as well as traffic into the neighborhood. Someone who is heading for a neighbors open house will most likely stop by yours simply because it is on the way.
Advertise Your Open House
You should plan to advertise your open house in your local newspaper, on Craigslist, or any other widely read publication available. Plan to advertise your open house one week in advance of the actual event.
You should be able to buy open house signs at an office supply store or a stationery store. Buy several, and place them in strategic intersections leading into your neighborhood. There should also be a sign just outside your neighborhood, as well as additional signs that will help prospects find their way to your home once inside the neighborhood.
Have a Supply of Professional Looking Flyers
You’ll need a supply of professional looking flyers, that will provide photos and important information (including contact information) about your property. Have at least 50 of these available, and make sure that everyone who visit’s the property takes a copy. (My Selling Your Home Made Simple program can help you make up the flyers – but more on that later.)
This is a step that you cannot afford to skip. Once people leave your home, your flyer will be their only reminder of your property. It may also be the starting point for them to contact you for negotiations.
Have a Sign Up Sheet
You should have a sign-up sheet prepared that will request visitors’ names, phone numbers, and even email addresses. This will not only provide you with a written record as to how many people attended your open house, but will also provide you with a ready list of prospective buyers to contact after the event.
Place the sign-up sheet in an obvious location, which should typically be where you place your flyers. If you want to get a bit fancy – and create a sense of obligation on the part of the prospects – you can also put out a plate of homemade cookies. Satisfying the taste buds never hurts when you’re try to sell something!
Don’t “Sell” at the Open House
Your purpose at your open house will be to inform and facilitate turning lookers into buyers, and never trying to sell them on the house outright. Yes, your purpose in hosting an open house is to sell the home, but you have to maintain a professional demeanor in doing so.
No one wants to be sold anything – they want to be free to look and make their own decision. Your job will be to make yourself available to provide information and to answer any questions they may have.
Understand that an open house is generally a point of first contact. It’s more of a “meet and greet” than anything else. Once prospects have seen the property, and have met you, you can begin constructive dialogue if the prospects have an interest in purchasing the home. But never get carried away and try to force the issue. Coming on too strong will only chase them away.
And never, ever come across as desperate to sell your home, even if you really are. People can sense desperation a mile away and they’ll run away from even a hint of it.
Follow-up With Anyone and Everyone on the Sign Up Sheet
A little earlier I recommended that you have a sign-up sheet available for visitors to provide you with information. This can be the most important outcome of a successful open house.
You should plan to contact everyone on the sign-up sheet a few days after your open house. People seldom make a decision on the spot, and your phone call or email could be the spark that motivates them to take the next step. You’ll be reaching out to them, rather than them having to make the effort to reach you. That kind of approach can break down a lot of barriers.
But once again, be sure that you are not trying too hard to sell your property. Your objective needs to be opening up a dialogue if there’s interest on the part of the prospects. If you can identify several prospects who have an interest, your open house will have been a success.
Once again, I want to emphasize that even if you use a real estate agent to list your home, it will be very likely that you will be hosting one or more open house events for the sale of your property. It’s just the nature of the real estate industry today.
You can get more information on how to run your own open house, as well as other valuable tips to help you sell your house without using a real estate agent by ordering my program, Selling Your Home Made Simple. It will show you all the ins and outs of selling a home, but save you thousands of dollars on the real estate commission.
( Photo by MarkMoz12 )
