An Open House can be a terribly boring way for an agent to spend an afternoon and an aggravation for sellers. Maybe a few people come, but they are often spread out over that 4 hour time slot and the spaces in between yawn endlessly. Agents will debate forever the effectiveness of an Open House. I happen to be a believer.

Instead in order to maximize the benefit for buyers, sellers and, well, the agent, turn your Open House into an event.

Hold three Open Houses on a Sunday afternoon, one hour each. That way the buyers pretty much all come at the same time. That generates a lot more enthusiasm among the buyers. Here are some tips:

•1.       I can showcase three different listing the same day. Many times I like to have homes in the same price range so that the same buyers come to each and I have a better chance of establishing rapport. I know the buyers are much happier when they can use their afternoon efficiently. They are more likely to bother with Open Houses if they have several homes to look at instead of just one.

There's another benefit of having lots of buyers show up. I liken it to the shop manager walking the factory floor. I hear their questions and comments about both the market and the particular house. I hear what they are worried or excited about.

•2.       Sellers benefit from the one hour format, too, but that may need to be explained to them. One seller was a bit shocked that her full Saturday of cleaning and preparing the house was only for one hour of showtime. Once I explain that all the buyers tend to come at once, generating a lot more excitement, they understand why it benefits them. Of course, I can always stay later at the last Open House if buyers continue to show up.

•3.       One of the reasons people come to my Open Houses, besides looking at a particular home, is for information. They want to know about the local market.  Of course, information about the Tax Credit is critical these days. There are still some homeowners who do not realize that they might be able to take advantage of the expanded tax credit. How much fun giving people that news!
Besides this kind of information, buyers want to know if they can afford to buy this home. Every good lender will be happy to provide a loan sheet showing how much their monthly payment will be given different loan configurations.

This Sunday our office, Coldwell Banker Uptown Realty, is holding our 3^rd annual Sweetheart Sunday Open Houses. We'll have 21 homes open. This has become the launch of the selling season because it generates activity and excitement. It even generates a sale or two. The shared excitement among the Coldwell Banker team members gets us focused on sales and pulls buyers out for a real look at their options.