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The THREE (3) reasons why you should NEVER EVER hold OPEN HOUSES!

After hearing so many reasons over my 28 years in real estate as to why one should not hold open houses, I thought it was my time to share with all just 3 reasons why you should NEVER EVER hold an open house. I am sure there are more than 3 reasons to stop this open house madness, but after seeing these 3, I deeply believe it will be enough to show you why you should throw in the towel on the whole OPEN HOUSE idea. Just stop it!!!!

READ SLOWWWLLLLYYY........

NOSY NEIGHBORS: Most of the open house I hold, I get all the neighbors around the community to pop by and want to chit chat and talk about the real estate market....Blah...blah....blah. Hey, I am here to sell this bloody house, not to see what is up in my neighbors' lives, or tell them about the real estate market. Some even want to know what is going on in my personal life: OMG! Geez, they can read the paper, watch the news, or, at worst, read my blogs. Perhaps I put this inconvenience on myself by emailing my sphere and community that there will be an open house, and I put up an open house river that says Open House this Sunday from 2-7. Duh! That is pretty stupid. Not many buyers will see that.....it will mainly be curious nosy neighbors. The more I do this, the more neighbors that show up to these open houses. Geeeez. Then at some point they will want me to list their home, and they have the nerve to have me do open houses at their home and have more nosy neighbors pop in. It is just a spiraling effect that I can't stop. Why do they have to come see the open houses and chat, chat, chat, chat? Then they want me to put them on a list for homes that come on the market in the future. Arghhhh, more work. Hey I am trying to sell this house. Can you just let me be? Then down the road they call me to list their home. Couldn't they just have called me when they are ready to list instead of bugging me at my open house? Or is there a correlation?
LOOKY LOOS: OMG. I get these people who come to open house after open house after open house, but they never....I mean never buy an open house. Stop coming to my open houses as I need to sell that house. Geeez. These people keep coming so much they start acting like the NOSY NEIGHBORS, as noted above, as they too want me to send them a list of homes that come up in the area. Hey dude, I need to sell this puppy; I surely don't need to do more work, as I know they will show up at my next open house and ask me questions about all the houses that I sent them. Blah....blah....blah... They whine and complain about everything they are sent. So they have the nerve to ask me to narrow their search criteria so they can see more of what they like. Great! More work for me. Don't they understand that I am trying to sell that open house. Go away!!!! Months go by and they call me to go buy a home! Well crud, why did they not just do that in the first place? Or is there a correlation?
NOBODY SHOWS UP: Then I have those open houses where neither the LOOKY LOOS or the NOSY NEIGHBORS don't show up. Maybe it was because they realized they were bugging me at the previous open houses. Finally, they realize that I am trying to sell this open house. But, not a sole shows up. 6 or 7 hours and nothing. What a waste of time! All I can do is to email my sphere, previous clients, past clients, current clients, and perhaps a few friends. Some are replies, some are just emails to say "waaasuuup". Yeah, there are always those few calls that need to make on my valuable weekend. Heck I could be at the lake, and all I am doing is chit chatting with people all day. This kinda reminds me of the LOOKY LOOS and the NOSY NEIGHBORS. All chit chat, but that bloody house is not sold.....nor does anyone come in just to see if I am breathing. Then down the road those folks call me up to either list their house or find a house for them, or both. Well CRUD, why was I wasting all my valuable time at the open house to chit chat about whatever when I could have gone to the lake with my family. What a waste! Or is there a correlation?

Just my 2 cents while I am sitting at this house waiting for a real buyer to come in and waiting for these nosy neighbors and looky loos to get the heck out of here. OMG. How rude: One of them wants to talk to me, so I must cut this short. (Well they will have to wait for this last line) So now you see why you should NEVER EVER hold an open house. Sorry, gotta go, this dude is asking me about selling his house. Can't he see that I am typing? Geeez.......

Posted by Tim Moncrief, Co-Owner-Bartlett RE Group on 06/27/2009 12:45 PM

Comments (291)

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Originally posted at: Austin Homes : The THREE (3) reasons why you should NEVER EVER hold OPEN HOUSES!

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291 Comments on The THREE (3) reasons why you should NEVER EVER hold OPEN HOUSES!

JUN

That's why I don't like doing open houses either but I have sold a house thru them.

It is great for new agents to generate business and meet with people. However, I can spend my time better on other lucrative accomplishments

Advice #23424: When reading blogs, read slowly.........

Tim

I have never sold a home I have held open but I know plenty of agents who have and ended up with both sides of the deal. I have picked up other wonderful listings from an open house. So it occasionally has its advantages.

Bravo Tim! At least I think Bravo is in order... please confirm!!

Lol - I was wondering who was going to read carefully :) - right now we have 4 people fighting over a house - all from the open house. oh, well. ~Rita

Tim - Like you, I am a big supporter for holding Open Houses.

There's no better way to meet prospective Buyers and Sellers and interact with people in the area!

ROFL...classic! I loved this and hear ya loud and clear!

Tim! GREAT POST! I wish more people understood the "correlation!".

all the best...

Hi Tim, Am I just lucky? It seems the harder I work, the luckier I get. Open houses do suck, that is why I do them as often as I can. If it sucks so much why would I do that? Because not many others do it! Maybe they are typing?

Ahhh, some are actually reading. Bravo!!! It is 107 friggin degrees and only 2 people.....and they had agents. Oh, yeah, this is my listing. Anyhow, I may cut loose at 6 and go see a movie. If someone comes in and is looking to buy or sell at 6, I am going to be really ticked.....

Cheers.

Loved your blog! Today had an agent at my open house say that the only people who ever come to her open houses are nosy neighbors.

They.

Just.

Don't.

Get.

It.

JUN

Tim

Guess what me and the new buyers agent are doing Sunday afternoon? Yep, in my farm, in my neighborhood, and got a call today from a nosy neighbor, so I just invited him over for Sunday afternoon. I'm gonna steal borrow (use with permission) this for the next 4-4-3 class. 6 nosy neighbor transactions in her so far in 09.

List and Sell (opens in the farm area yep) Gary @ RentonHomeFinder.com

Some people might just as well not hold a home open..they do not do opens well.

They are not prepared to really sell the house. Even a nosy neighbor can tell that.

They do only the minimum to promote or convert. Even a Looky Loo can spot that.

If your open house does not have a lot of traffic, what is your back-up plan for utilizing the time invested?

You need one. I guess blogging in off moments would be better than nothing.

Oh, Tim, I feel your pain! As a result of having to deal with all those pesky people who interpret an Open House as their personal invitation to come strolling through my listing, I've put together a Preliminary Checkpoint Team. I have them position themselves along the walkway and require all those nosy neighbors and looky-loos (NNLLs) to be qualified at each point before I'll allow them to cross the threshold. I've tried to be very thorough when building this team, which includes:

A former CIA operative to run a complete background check. If the NNs and LLs are of questionable background--NO ADMITTANCE!

A loan officer to prequalify their financial abilities. If they don't have the funding before availing themselves of the promise of Happily Ever After I offer within my listing--NO ADMITTANCE!

My personal psychic (who specializes in interpreting auras.) If my girl sees even the slightest indication that the wannabe looker is in anyway going to be harshin' on my easy--NO ADMITTANCE!

My blind-as-a-bat Great Aunt Bessie. She'll talk your ear off. If those folks are still determined to enter after being held captive to GAB's incessant dialogue waxing poetic on the pros and cons of daily fiber therapy, they must complete a brief quiz to prove that they listened and retained the info that my dear GAB bestowed upon them, otherwise--NO ADMITTANCE!

And, finally, if they've made it to the front door, they must agree to be photographed and logged into my NNLL database. They will then be issued a laminated ID card, good for 3 months of access to all my fabulous open houses. If said ID should expire without resulting in a new listing, a new uber-qualified buyer, or, at the very least, a stellar referral, their name is automatically transferred to my BLACKLIST database. Once on that list, they are dead to me, and I am relieved of any and all responsibility to acknowledge their existence.

Let me tell you, it's changed my life! I've even heard rumors that people have been trying to purchase my Exclusive Admittance IDs on eBay! You just can't buy that kind of publicity! Go for it Tim! What have you got to lose?

hope you read this v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y! ;-)

I knew this would be good to peek back in on...

I still have this problem with the fact that those pesky sellers equate this inane activity of offering the actual SPACE for NNLL's to experience to some sort of due dilligence and positive image of hard work on the listing agent's part. Uh...meeting a client's needs or perceptions??? How can that possibly have a place in a successful business model :)

Great post, great comments!

Hey Tim,

Oh, thought I would give you a few more points!!

Have a great day!

Tim - Guess those speed reading classes I took in college served me badly. I missed the point first time around, but see it now.

Starting this afternoon, I will kiss nosy neighbors ardently on the mouth, show the looky loos a chair and offer them all a choice of beverages so that when no one else shows up to buy my #$%&* house, I will at least have someone to amuse me with talk to about their lives, their trials and tribulations, their children, their infidelities, their foundation cracks, their stretch marks, their recent surgeries, high gas prices, Michael Jackson's legacy, health care, how to remove peanut butter from a six-year-old's hair, shoe sizes, gun control, Donald Trump, the Triple Crown, the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the situation in the Middle East, mixed martial arts, the Housewives of New Jersey, and oh yes, real estate.

Kim - CLASSIC! OMG! I am choking on my coffee...as I am rushing out to, you guessed it, hold an Open House on one of my listings.

Ed - darn, now I gotta stop what I am doing and go see what kind of beverages I have oh hand so that I may follow in your stellar example. But, arrgghhhh, I thought this would be the one friggin' place I could go without hearing, reading or seeing the name-I-can-no-longer-mutter.

Am relieved there is more reading comprehension here than I first suspected.

Tim, Tim, Tim! I adore the neighbors! And those Looky Lous sometimes become my very best friends. And we all know that the purpose of an Open is to let the neighbors and Looky Lous check out the decor, not to sell the place!

I held an open house today, no lookers at all. But no sweat, no skin off my nose, I relaxed and read some magazines with some awesome recipes in them. Another with great ideas if you are into French country style decorating. No computer as the wireless access was security enabled and I forgot to get the code from my clients. Oh well.

I have had some great success at open houses, so, even though some just don't show instant results, I will still do them.

Yeah, maybe I am thick headed.. I know.

Thanks to Patricia for putting this on the Week In Review...I came to read and enjoy your 3 points. Unfortunately, there are agents who don't get it and think they shouldn't hold an open house because of the nosy neighbors and looky loo's. I myself LOVE those kind of people and welcome them at open's.

I was laughing during each point. Thanks for this!

So many agent have convinced themselves that they are a waste and for them I'm sure they are.

You are so funny - and Kim was the frosting on the cake.

Hi Tim -- Great post. Agreed. The real question is: Do agents tell their sellers the truth about open houses and who is the beneficiary.

JUN

I get it!!! Open houses are an indirect way to get business. Maybe I should do more...

Can't help it, Tim, I'm a fast reader. But somehow I did pick up that this might, just might, be tongue-in-cheek. And Opens might, just might, have a positive impact on my wallet...

Tim - Soooooo true. Frustration for the sellers is when you don't get them a buyer "THAT DAY" of the open house. But, I have gotten NEW clients by chit chatting with the nosey neighbors and looky loos too!! I did read slowly too. I've never had an open house result in double siding that specific house....but getting new clients is the was to expand your customer base. This was a great Monday morning post to read! Have a great week!

Great post We get lots of future buisness from open houses!

As I completely agree with all those things happening at most of my open houses... in the past 10 days though- I have sold not 1 but TWO 300,000 houses at open houses. I hate them as much as every other realtor does but here in little ol' Richmond, KY they seem to be working right now!

Tim,

Good post, and I agree that open houses can be a very good strategy if approached correctly. :)

Steve

interesting to see how many people didn't READ SLOWLY and missed the point of the post - LOL

What a HOOT!!!! Fabulous post! Opens, while not often a "direct" route to income (as in selling that house!) are very often an indirect route. Important challenge is ALWAYS the management of expectations. Sellers need to know up front that an Open on their house will likely NOT sell their house (but, hey, maybe the open on someone else's house WILL!)

Funny post! I guess I'm a slow enough reader to catch on :)

WOW - after reading the teaser headline, I couldn't WAIT to get the site open! I had all kinds of things to blast you with. I was so agitated that I had to enter my password three times. HA - the joke was on me and Tim Moncrief is 100% right on target. Great posting and it should be shared with ANY AGENT who isn't having the year they wished they were having. Opens are cerrtainly one of the most "public" and "seen" things that we do, and a terrific way to put ourselves in contact with buyer and seller prospects.

Tim - LOVE it! Haven't read your blog before but am subscribing now...

All of this gave me a chuckle this morning, yet also a new perspective on the "dreaded" open house! Kudos to all of the creative responders as well!

Think I will go schedule an open house at one of my "lovely" vacant, distressed properties today....you know you will get the "looky loos" on them! ....hope all the neigboring kids are running amok!!

Just yesterday, a buyer walked into the condo I was holding open, did an on-the-spot loan application with the lender who was there with me and conveyed her interest in submitting an offer. For the record, I referred her to someone to represent her. I did not want to do dual agency when I was expecting multiple offers. Call me crazy, but she'll be in good hands with one of my colleagues.

Eight weeks ago, I met an all cash buyer at an open house. We closed Friday. Oh those pesky O.H. visitors ;)

Held an open house for an REO auction property yesterday. Had 9 people come through - all investors looking for deals. They may not buy that one, but now I have 9 new leads to work.

Clever post! Reminded me of a teacher who used to give a pop quiz with at least one "trick" question. Some people read so fast they miss the "read slowly", which is the first key that something may be amiss, and not all it seems at quick glance.

Sorry, but if I never do another open house in my life time I will be just fine. I work enough hours and have enough leads from my website that I don't need to spend five hours on a Sunday pissing off my family to talk to a bunch of maybe's.

I sell 10% of my listings through Open Houses.

Tim - You had me hooked with the headline, but I enjoyed reading the whole post. When I do my annual review of where my leads come from for both listings and buyers, Open Houses are near the top. It's the only way that potential buyers and sellers can get to know you casually without any pressure. I had an Open House yesterday with just one visitor, so I used the time to call up my clients and SOI to check in. The time flew by. The one visitor doesn't have an agent and I've signed her up on Listingbook. She wants to buy a home in my market area and is ready to buy now. Congratulations on the Featured post!

aaaaaaaaahahahaha -

VERY GOOD!

I agree... nothing to add.

I've been doing regular Open Houses since becoming an agent last year and have seen some results already. I have a good contact list built up from the lurkers and should have more good results (i.e.-sales) very soon from this list.

How about we just be honest about Open Houses. They are designed by Realtors for Realtors. They bring us new clients, buyers and sellers. I personally hate doing them. I would much prefer to spend my time with qualified buyers and sellers. Mostly my buyers are going to open houses in the early stages of looking for a home and then come to me when they are ready to get serious. As long as we are honest with our sellers about open houses, let them know it is not likely that their home will sell that day and let them make the decision as to whether they should allow an open house or not.

I have heard people say they don't do opens, or opens don't work...I tried that, and it makes business grind to a halt! I'm more of a listing agent, I enjoy promoting listings. I tend to find your approach is what keeps my pipeline full of people. I completely agree with people who say they should never, ever do opens. Leave them for me, thanks!

WaaaaSuuuuuppp?????

Awsome!

Great post! It's amazing all the reasons people can come up with to "not" do something! I'll be sharing this with some of my agents!

Very clever blog Tim, a thoroughly enjoyable read. Nice to read you are having success w/ your Open Houses!

The best way to get yourself know in an area is to allow buyers or "looky loos" in on an open house. For the most part it is free advertising. If you razel dazel a "looky loo" enough with you being a sales person, you have a future referal.

If you do it right at the open house you have there contact information, or enough to look up where they live, and start a mailing them information once a week, or once a month. I send everyone a "Thank you for attending a open house" card. Then it is just a matter of keeping yourself in there face.

If they respond "I don't want to hear from you", I have had a few of them, be pleasent and say than you so much for your patience and time, if there is anything I may help you with in the future, please contact me".

Then make sure they get a callender at the beginning of the year.

All the reasons I hold Open Houses! Gotta love it, just part of our profession. They really do help pass the time, and propagate more business. Pretty boring if the Lookie Lous and Nosy neighbors didn't show up! I just love Open Houses my favorite part of my job, ten times better than any soap opera, and I really get paid for doing this!! And that is why I love my job. I guess you really have to like people!

Sold sellers home at open house for $185,000 and earned $11,100 commission.

Sold that seller a home for $538,000 at an open house and earned $32,280 commission.

Same buyer decides two months later to flip house. At open house a builder pays $650,000 and I earned a $39,000 commission.

Same sellers purchase my listing at an open house for $280,000 and I earned a $16,800 commission.

Over $99,000 in commissions within approximately one year earned at open houses. It is the most passive way to acquire buyers and sellers. In this market it is an exceptional way to find motivated buyers even if the home does not sell.

Tim, On the 1st Sunday of each month, I sponsor what we call "First Sunday - Townwide Open House" in Milton, Delaware. Months ago I contacted every other agent with listings in town, regardless of agency, and asked if they would like to cooperate and maybe promote this together. I got press coverage, and the writer was so impressed that agents might really cooperate. I got the Fire Department to add it to their sign and more. Well, after the first month, participation dropped way off. The other agents said "Open Houses are a waste of time", etc., etc.

Then I got a second listing in Milton and on the First Sunday in June, I was at the new listing and my husband Bill was at the other - which happended to be our own home. Now, here is where it gets interesting. Several people came to the one that Bill was hosting and one in particular seemed so interested, he sent him over to see me as well. Bill says that I'm the one that negotiates contracts. Turns out he was very interested and asked if he could meet me after the Open House back at our home to talk about writing up an offer.

We went through the agency discussion and he was fine with the fact that it was our house, our Remodeling Company that done the total renovation and remodeling/addition and, and, and. We negotiated and wrote up the Agreement of Sale. Within two days he had a Home Inspection and it passed with flying colors. We are sheduled to settle on July 21st and I'm now packing and trying to figure out where we are going to be living in a few weeks - all good problems to have don't you think?

Oh, those listings with the other agents that feel Open Houses are a waste of time? One is now rented, one is withdrawn and the others remain for sale. I am about to list another home in a great location for an Open House and I'm hoping he can be ready for this Sunday.

I LOVE doing the oipen houses!

Let me share my SATURDAY 11-1 Open House strategy:

1. No one home & no animals there + house MUST be spotless

2. MINIMUM of 12 open house directional signs

3. Lights on & POSITIVE Attitude that a buyer will come to you today.

My Sellers love me to do Open Houses because I give them a report of how many people came and what their interest is (via email from my Blackberry as I am closing up). I have had 3 listings as a direct result as well as MANY buyers that I call frm the past week when I had no time to follow up. I LOVE being alone with the phone for 2-3 hours in a quiet house. I do explain at the listing appointment that only .1% of Buyers come fom the Open Houses . Then I say that I WILL do Open Houses whern the house is ready and perfect. Usually that keeps Sellers from tying up EVERY weekend. and I get caught up on SOME of my followup calls! It is all about YOUR attitude! If you WANT people to show up, they will! EVERYONE is a prospect, even the neighbors!

LOL Great post!

I have sold a few homes that have had NO showings at all, from people stopping at my open houses. We get a good turnout and we know they shouldn't be EVERY weekend, but 1-2 during the term of the listing does not hurt and can really help. You need to try everything within your means to sell your listings and open houses have proven to sell some of the time.

Sincerely,

Kathleen

Hi Tim This is genius witha clever twist. The slower the read, the more lasting the message. Great job although when I first scanned the post Headline and first few lines. It told myself...Is this guy nuts.....but your are not!!!!

just very innovative Great great job

Great post Tim. I have made lots of money doing open houses. In eight years I have sold 20 properties on open house. I have also listed 12 properties from people who have walk through the open house and liked the way I showed the property to them. I am not a passive open house person. I want each person who walks throught the door to feel welcome and happy that they stopped in. Even in our down market, I sold an open house and closed last month. It was a big one too.

I never dread doing an open house. I look it as an opportunity to meet people, have some fun, or if no one shows, I get some paperwork done, or I read through emails. I find where the lookers are coming from, sign, ad, internet, so I have gained marketing expertise, and I have put my name in front of more potential buyers/sellers. I usually do two a month on Sunday and some weekday nights. Remember to sell a house on open house, you must do an open house. It is a numbers game.

Thanks Tim! Awesome post. I'm going to "steal" Gary's idea and "borrow" this for my next 4:4:3 class on open houses which I have expanded to "Open Houses on Steroids". If you'd like me notes or Power Point for that in exchange, just give me a shout and I'll "lend" it to you!

Is this what you tell your new, inexperienced recruits? Do have them cold call as well? Open houses are very Market Centric, pretty much regional. In Texas, they are not that effective. Maybe 1 in 800 homes will sell because of an open house. If agents are taught, well even required to counsel their clients and price their listing correctly, there is never a need for an open house.

Yeah, one of those Nosy Neighbors came to an open I held last year, and had the nerve to ask if I'd come over and list his house when I was through! Didn't he know I was tired? And it took me 60 days to sell his $300k log cabin. Yeesh! ;-)

Well, not to throw water on your party, but one of my past clients, a detective with the local police department, said to me "Yea, this sounds like a smart idea - advertise to the world that you are going to be alone in a house, come on over."

Tim:

DId one this weekend and had a couple that were there for 1 hour and went through the purchase of their house piece by piece. They had no intention of buying the house but just hung around this house for nosy sake. Total waste of my time. I agree.....

Another reason you should have a virtual open house by OpenHomes247.com

Love this post! I am a firm believer in open houses myself....kind of cool but this weekend our State did a national open house weekend which was great information for my blog this week. I did an open...and you guessed it....two neighbors....and one of them has someone he knows looking for a house.....love it!

Great post. Any opportunity to build a rapport with people in the community is time well spent. Everyone at some point, will need to buy a house, sell their house or recommend a real estate professional to someone else. Open houses is one opportunity to build that rapport and create relationships with potential clients or referrals.

Thank for making your point and doing it in such a clever way. We all need the reminder.

LOL! One thing I learned the hard way about Open Houses that I learned the hard way-- don't bring cookies-- ya end up eating the whole box yourself! Besides, when you meet your next future Buyer, you shouldn;t be talking with your mouth full.

I think there is a correlation! Thanks Tim..

Love the tongue-in-cheek. Open houses can be used to your advantage if you let them. You have to learn how to work them! LOL

Great Post! Many new agents ask me if they can hold my listings open, and of course I will let them if I've got buyers that weekend or other plans. One thing to keep in mind....I had a new listing in My neighborhood, My Farm, and I had out of town buyers the first weekend. A new agent asked to hold it open and I told her sure! Who dropped in but all the nosy neighbors looking for ME, wanting to see their Neighborhood Realtor! Now I think twice before letting someone else hold at least the first open house for the listing.

What I really need to think about is how it would best utilize my time to hire a Buyers Agent to deal with the out of towners on the weekend.....now that's a thought!!

Very good! Tongue In Cheek! The lemon of an open house can become a frosty glass of lemonaid! I think this is a good prespective. Very Clever ( and true)!

Reminds me of Dickens "A Modest Proposal" , great post Tim

Open Houses are great for rookies and sellers- these are the people who benefit the most. The seller because it makes them feel like your earning that commission, and if you get some people there, you can get feedback (good or bad) for the seller.

Rookies, this is a good way to meet prospects- assuming they are not lookys-loos or nosy neighbors.

This post was on the money!

I think the effectiveness of open houses depends greatly on the market area that you are in. I know other agents in other states who swear that is the best way to sell a home. In Atlanta where I am, I don't know of any incident where an open house directly and instantly generated a sale. However, I still believe in doing them. It certainly doesn't do any damage. The signs and balloons call attention to the property. I welcome and encourage the nosy neighbors to come by. In fact, if I get there early enough, I sometimes knock on the surrounding neighbor's doors to personally invite them to come over. The reason: Many times, they have a relative or friend who is moving to the area and if they like what they see they might tell their friends about it. It takes time to lead to results; but can lead to a sale indirectly over time. Also, it is a fantastic opportunity to meet neighbors who are potentially future listings for me and/or buyers who have just started looking and have not selected an agent yet. I bring my laptop and phone with me so that I can be somewhat productive during the time in the event that nobody shows up - or sometimes I arrange client meetings to sign contracts, etc. for other deals while I am there; so I am still making good use of the time. Open houses are a lot of work; but they are worth doing and I believe the seller deserves the effort for these if they are paying for full service representation.

This is SO GOOD!! Starts my morning off right!! Great humor--love all the comments! I've been an advocate of open houses for all of my 28 years in real estate--because the first 10 were in New Home subdivision sales where I learned how to WORK them, not SIT them. When I went into re-sales, my office agents actually were heard to say--who does she think she is--she just "sat a tract??" And I was told that I could not place my own color open house ad in the newspaper because that was the broker's job--other sellers would expect them to do it and they couldn't afford it (!?!??) PU-LEASE!! And why waste money on those fancy-schmancy personalized professional open house signs--and buying all those baloons that just burst anyway! Who do you think you are, anyway! And just showing off with that furniture you put in the house to "STAGE" it?? and hiring a piano player in a tux to serenade those looky luus in that million dollar listing??? And the wine and champagne and strawberries for a regular old open house on that $2 million listing?? What gives, dummy, you're just throwing money away! And now you're posting them on facebook--we don't want to see work stuff there--just fun stuff!

Yeah, right!

What are all those cars doing there anyway?? Let's go see what's happening!!! Maybe we should tell our friends to come over so we at least would like the new neighbors!

Can I pu-lease please sign up to help you with your open houses--so I can steal some of these leads you're getting????

Very nice backhanded way to promote Open Houses, Tim!

“We could run this hotel like a hotel should be run if it weren't for the customers”

Comedian John Cleese from the show Fawlty Towers,

Tim,

Then every once in a while, a mortgage guy (that would be me) comes by to drop off flyers, business cards, etc. to keep you company while "you're not at the lake" . Friendships and then business relationships could follow and then, Heaven forbid, a real referral from each other that actually pans out and another home is sold and a mortgage is placed. What a foolish idea!

Keep those cards and letters coming, folks.

I LOVE Open Houses, too.

Gene Fitzpatrick-The Mortgage Doctor-"I still make House Calls"

Tim,

Mostly I would agree with you, i haven't held one in almost a year and just did and picked up a buyer who is now working with me, so never say NEVER!!

Thanks for the post.

I agree. Open Houses are generally a waste of time....I used to do them more often, but realized I had better use for my time.

I assume most everyone understood the comical aspect of this article. If not, perhaps I can help.

Start with understanding the REAL reason for holding open houses (finding buyers and sellers). Do your planning and pre-marketing for the open house (signs, door hangers, postcards, etc.) Offer a drawing for a small gift to ensure you get correct names, emails, phone numbers. Then JUST DO IT!!

One suggestion: always keep an appointment time open just after the OH. Then, identify the best buyer prospect you meet at the open house and set an appointment to show them the house that will REALLY meet their needs.

Ha... I guess my brain thinks differently.....

I've had good luck with open houses and a few that were less than thrilling. If nothing else, my open house signs are posted in the area and the neighborhood knows I'm working.....

if people see you working, they'll remember you later when its their turn to sell or buy. They know you'll work for them!

Just my thoughts.... Have a happy week!

Love it!!!LOL Even when no one shows up (unfortunately that has happened), I get caught up on my REALTOR magazine, phone calls...or even a goofy romance novel. Having 3 hours to myself can be a real treat!

OMG, I just called one of my Sellers and reminded her that it will be "First Sunday" this weekend and we'll be doing the town-wide Open House and she said NO! Just because we didn't sell it the first time, she now feels they are a waste of time. Whose time? When did she become the real estate professional?

You got me with the headline. I wanted there to really be a reason not to open houses. Oh well, I guess I'll just keeping holding open house.

Great post! I do get how an Open Houses can generate business. Though I have often thought if no one held Open Houses, more people would call me from my sign to set up an appointment. Hence I would still get that business & have my Sunday too. But until then... I go put out my Open signs. ~ JC

And what if one of the nosy neighbors knew someone else who might want that house!!! Next thing you know they'd be referring you and you'd have to make an appointment to show them the house. More work!! (by the way, I am amazed that some of the posts above didn't see the satirical nature of your post and are agreeing with you that open houses are a waste of time!)

I agree with those who support them. I disagree with those who think they are for newbies, and that there are more "lucrative" things to do. I have held an open house one someone else's listing, snagged, nailed, and closed an almost $1M deal... I call that lucrative, seeing as all I did was unlock some doors, buy some finger foods, and poor some champagne ;)

I feel your frustration, these are very common things to happen at an open house, but it's a numbers game, and sooner or later you'll grab that buyer.

Best of luck to you!

-Brendan Winans

PS. I did read the whole thing... quite funny ;)

Love it Tim! Keep telling folks to stop holding opens, stay in touch, network and farm They are all a waste of time and money. Keep the secrets of how we stay in business for the long haul for the rest of us!

I'm not crazy about doing them, but I have made some sales from them. Makes the seller happy, although I have had my share of looky loos, nosy neighbors, and no shows. Right now, we're running a Open House promotion, so guess where I'll be the second Sunday of each month for a while...

Thanks

Clever article! I've always done Open Houses to a greater or lesser degree, but in the current market I do a lot more. There is no better way to get exposure for the home and to make sure the locals know I'm the area specialist. And those pesky people who come in wanting to list, don't they know we're busy. Sorta makes you feel put upon, doesn't it.

thanks for the post. very informative! yes, seems like I get bunches of nosey neighbors also, when holding these open houses. I agree it is a numbers game. thx again!

Great post. Makes me wannna hold an "open house" on a lot I am selling. :)

OMG! I loved this. Great blog and the humor has such a great point. I have answered to others that I had only neighbors and looky loos, this certainly changes how I will look at them from now on. Come by and chat away!

I love my nosy neighbors too! LOL

The Best Post in years!

Read slowly, check 'satire' in dictionary!

Thanks for the great laugh this morning. Open houses can be challenging but necessary to expose the home to the market. Yes, we all know sellers expect them as well.

I have sold homes from open houses and to top it off...I have gotten buyers. Imagine that.

LOL! Great post. Love the sarcasm! With today's technology, there is not much difference between sitting in an office and holding and open house in terms of productivity.

Reminds me of the old story about "how to get people to stop bothering you."

The RATIO on time spent to getting an actual business event to happen is??? Well? N I L to Z E R O for time spent on that activity. Good try, but I'm not buying it. Open Houses are not a productive use of your time unless you call warming the sellers couch with your butt productive!

quite clever and witty... just downright hysterical. i really did laugh out loud. this is why i will NEVER and i mean EVER hold an open house again! wink! wink!

I wish we had the nosy neighbors and looky loos to come by. We had two agents put forth a lot of time, effort and preparation into holding their open houses. These were two very nice homes that offered a good price as well as location. Unfortunately, neither agent had one visitor, well except me. I try to get by open houses as often as possible if only to preview the home if it is new on the market. Both agents were very disheartened about their respective open houses. I've heard from FSBO's as well that this is a common occurrence. They will hold an open house and no one shows up. We've tried Saturdays, Sundays and even the occasional week night for something different. In spite of all this, I am still considering one for my newest listing. A great home in a nice older neighborhood. I'll try not to go overboard on refreshments and such...

I don't agree at all. This year....I have sold a home that I did an open house at to a open house client, sold 2 others to clients that came to my open house but the open house didn't fit them and this weekend alone....I wound up with a great new client on Saturday from an open house and Sunday on a different open house.

When a neighbor comes by....talk a little and be polite. You never know if they have a friend in mind for the neighborhood. If they state they are simply being nosey....politely tell them you will give them a quick look and walk them through at a faster rate. Oddly enough....I did this with the one I mentioned above that bought the home. This couple came in and said....we admired the house from the outside and are being nosey. Well, not only did they live 12 houses away.....but they purchased the home and I got the other house as a new listing!!!!!

Be positive and you will see the world in a different light.

The only legitimate reason to not hold open houses is no one showing up. The other two categories are buyers and/or sellers of something. Probably not this open house, however. I have three things in escrow that my first contact was either an open house or a sign on a sold property before I could post it as pending. Open houses have come back into vogue in this market. My biggest problem is generating traffic. Houses in the bowels of a subdivision are hard to get people routed through the neighborhood to them. We have subdivisions that not only prohibit directional signs on the weekend, but they actually confiscate signs if you put them out. I remember a quote from a friend who said while stuck in traffic on the freeway one day that she looked around and saw all the people and then commented to herself that all of these people were potential customers. All you have to do is meet them. Open houses are still one way to meet folks.

Great Positive way to start this week. Thanks!

Hey Tim, OPEN HOUSES sound like a lot of work to me. You have to talk with people, be friendly (God forbid), maybe even spend some personal time re-evaluating your business. Doesn't sound like a great idea to me. (I've got to be careful with my sarcasm. Based upon several of your responses, many people don't "get" satire.) GREAT POST!

I think you are a sitting duck for weirdos. You need to have another person with you if you do have an open house. They just keep the seller happy they do not sell the house.

Absolutely loved reading this blog post! Hip hip...horray :-). I guess I need to stop blogging, just got a 'come list my house' call from someone who used my exact keywords to find me on Google. Jeez. What's wrong with people!

Read S L O W L Y- loved it! My very first listing I held it open the first weekend and sold it that day. Not the norm, I know (especially since they came in from a ....newspaper ad) and it also led to another listing and 2 buyers. This Saturday our office held 7 homes open on a lake and I had 30 looky loos, nosy neighbors, and a NEW BUYER to show homes to this weekend.

I enjoyed the humor!

There is but one reason not to have open house and only two reason to have open house.

Reason not to hold open house.

You could be causing your seller a disservice. Yes that's right a disservice. If your open house has nosey neighbors and looky loos you can not possibly give these buyers the full attention they need to arrive at a decision about your sellers house, especially if your are spending time talking to them about listing their home.

When a buyer arrives at an open house they are full aware that there is a sales person there to sell them a house right away a barrier is up that you have to penetrate before being heard. That buyer is there to eliminate that home from their list. Once that is done they are not coming back. I read once that less than 1% of buyers who tour an open house actually buy the open house.

If you thru marketing and sphere of influence attract a buyer to see your sellers house, and meet that buyer at your office for pre-qualification time, put them in your car drive them to the house for a tour, you will have broken must of the sales barrier fronts, you will have gained confidence and trust and you will then have a buyer who is ready to listen to you. You will also have a buyer that you know more about, you know what is the likes, needs, and dislikes are about that buyer, now you are ready to show the house to the buyer. Now you can fully represent your sellers house to this buyer giving your full attention as needed. Now you have a better chance of closing on that sale. In the event you are unable to close on the first showing, you now have a buyer you can take around for comparison shopping in hopes to bring them back to your sellers house for a 2nd look.

Reason 1 to hold open house:

If you are a buyers agent this is a wonderful opportunity to attract buyers, and take them to show other agents listings. You can then convince those buyers that you are acting in their best interest and they should hire you to be their buyers agent. Of course you can't represent them on the house you just had open.

Reason 2 to hold open house:

Your seller does not know about the one reason not to hold open house. They think that selling real estate is so easy that all you have to do is open the door and buyers will bring pens ready to sign an agreement to buy thier home! Or they think you are supper sales person and can at one glance convince the buyers that they should buy this house today!

Darwin White

RE/MAX Properties

Chattanooga TN 37421

423-894-2900

DarwinWhite@RealEstateHomeLink.com

www.RealEstateHomeLink.com

Great reading. I enjoyed throughly from beginning to end! :)

I can honestly say that I DID READ SLOWWWLLLLYYY.....

Initially I started to feel my jaw drop, then caught on to the "happenings" at the end of each situation.

Guess that's why my manager still believes in open houses!!

Colorful post my friend. 3 good reasons indeed with the last being my ultimate favorite. Of course there is the thrill of telling the homeowner that not 1 person showed up. YUCK!

I do not hold open houses with a few rare exceptions. I just listed a home that is priced WAY under market in an area where they are building new homes and in two weeks they will be doing what's called the SW Showcase of Homes and coming to the neighborhood I just listed in so a prime opportunity to hopefully cash in on this event.

Good stuff, thanks!

Outstanding Post - well written and very funny.

It reminds me of when I was a brand new salesperson (wayyy too many years ago). If our manager saw someone sitting in the office working on "stuff" during the prime part of the day when they could be prospecting or closing deals he would say "I really admire the way you don't ever let customers stand in the way of your paperwork".

I personally am not a fan of open houses and i have never got business from one. But I do know of some agents that have got buyers from open houses, so I guess it can't be that bad.

Great Post - I just put 5 open house visitors (neighbors) in my sphere in the past week! I love open houses!

Thanks for a wonderful read on a Monday morning! I especially like it since my open house yesterday had 0 visitors!! Oh, well, I did a lot of business reading and actually wrote a few personal notes.

You rock!

Now that was funny. When I was a new agent I spent many a weekend doing open houses. It did help my business, but I too have never sold the home I was holding open. :)

Hi Tim~ I guess I need to re-adjust my attitude about opens! I had one yesterday and only one person came....but I like your thinking and I know I need to change mine... Thanks for sharing your perspective.

Laughing Out Loud. This is great. I just did an Open House yesterday and nobody showed. But I did get to chat with some nice neighbors. Thanks for reminding me- - It's never a waste!

Tim,

Great blog!! It's funny that STILL agents don't understand the concept of an open house.

But I never sell the house that I have open!

No?

Did buyers find you?

Do the neighbors want to sell?

Yeah, might as well just sit at home and watch golf on tv.

NOT

I too hate open houses. I fell like I am babysitting other agent's clients while they are at the cottage or skiing. There is that odd time where you do make a connection and you get a neew client-either buyer or seller. Some people do use an open house as a way of scouting out a new agent.

Good bye cold calling in Ontario. At one time I used to take my phone lists with me and use that time to cold call. That was very successful.

We need to use every method we have to get new clients. When you think about it you can spend a couple of hours writing a really great blog. What is the percentages of success of blogging to get us new clients?

Everything we do in real estate is hit and miss. We must do more to increase the chances of successful hits that turn into valuable clients.

Open houses are also a great way to just take time out and read a good book or article that we are otherwise too busy to catch up on.

Really good post, reading slowly helps lol.

Too funny!

For years I was trained by a very large company (who will remain nameless) that open houses were a waste of time...unless I was having all of my A+ clients there for a big client appreciation get together. I wonder how that company is doing now????.......

Open houses are such a great way to add leads into your hopper and to develop a rapport with the local community as a trusted expert! I wish I wouldn't have wasted over $400 per month to have someone tell me otherwise :P

Sarcasm............the ultimate communicator! Thanks for the fun and great reminders.

I agree there is nothing more annoying than a new prospect walking in the door and refusing to make an offer right there! Especially the first time buyer who is only there to try and make a connection with an agent who will explain the home buying process to them. (I say sarcastically).

If nobody shows up I at least have a few hours to catch up on paperword, emails, SOI calls, etc. at the very least time to catch up on some reading. Almost every consumer asks me about open houses (especially the expired listing consumer). The consumer feels that having an Open House is vital. True?? Can't say I have sold a property directly related to the open house, I have picked up clients though directly to open house.

Goog blog.

Thanks so much for the comments. I always tell my sellers the reality of open houses. I do tell them that the national average for a house selling from an open house is 1%; but ours is at 3%, but 6% of our business comes from open houses. So where one buyer may not like your home, we can show them another of our listings; and if a buyer does not like one of our other open houses we can show them your home. The numbers are what they are. It's not a big odd of selling your home, but it does increase it a tad. Would you like for us to hold your home open. This does two things. It tells the seller the percentage of selling their home and there will be sellers that refuse to have an open house because of what I said; thus, they are not on your case about having an open house.

Is having an open house the greatest of all marketing tools? No. But 6% of our business is something pretty tough to give up. At this stage, I am not at the point to throw in the towel on $3mil of biz. Thx. to all...........

I had an open house for a home which had not been on the market for years. The first hour I had 30 people through the home, all neighbors wanted to see this exclusive house. The next weekend, I had 25 people through the house, some real estate agents wanting to get a glimpse of the home. I even had the second family who had lived in the home from 1952-1987 come through with eight people to see if anything had changed. All this, and not one buyer amongst them. No more open houses for me. What a waste of time!

I was told when I started, open houses are not about selling homes, they are about getting clients for the agent.

I was all ready to read a good reason NOT to do open houses anymore, but unfortunatly I read slowly as Tim recommended and, well..... Dang it!

Like you, I have benefit from doing open house, I got referral, listing, selling that open house and other houses just because I don't have a life but doing open house every weekend as long as the weather allows. I can't complain.

My first deal in real estate was from holding an open house - and it was a $900,000 sale! I thought, "wow, this real estate business is so easy!" Of course, reality hit me soon thereafter, but I have never stopped believing in the power of open houses.

Hey Tim from Texas. I have to say reading blogs from Active Rain is one of my favorite things each day. I don't have time to read many becasue I truly am working and I can get lost in all of our social networking.......then before you know it my whole day is gone and I'm exhausted for no sane reason. So, I read a few and promise myself to try to go back and read more "later". Your title caught my eye. Really. Reasons to not hold opens!!! After all of these years someone might have an idea thats better??!! Even the idea of some freaky person coming in while I am alone in an empty house hasn't kept me from doing them....so what might this guy say??? I had to read.... And then I had to laugh. After all of these years (you know....the ones I just mentioned) what made me think your comments would be anything less than "get off your arse and get a clue"??!! haha Thanx for the smile first thing Monday monring and for being the first to get me off my arse and actually leave a comment. I'm usually a closet reader......I share with other agents in my office from time to time, but mostly I read, don't comment back and save the ones I like for reading again when I have more "time"............my saved file keeps growing...... :-) Thanx again Tim, I'll be sure to share this one as well! Kathy from Oregon

You really know how to catch our attention with your headline and your droll comments! Loved the post! My husband is just getting started in RE and plans to hold open houses! Hmmmmm, I wonder if he'll have to put up with nosy neighbors and looky loos? All he want to do is find some BUYERS and a few SELLERS!!!

Duh!!!

Debbie Fiskum, The Home Decor Genie!

Regarding a couple of replies: Always have the mindset that you are going to have a great day even if NO ONE shows up. Sometimes I over to that mindset as I will want to work on a marketing campaign and blog, and then I hear the door open and internal I sigh, as I want to get what I had planned done. So sometimes a good mindset can bite you. But if no one shows up on an open house, I promise you I will have had a successful day. Maybe it was not selling a home, maybe it was getting those 100 update calls to my sphere that I have been postponing all week........

Too funny Tim.

Great post! It's funny - in years past, i turned up my nose at open house because "I was too busy", but during these slower times, I find myself getting back to basics on a lot of fronts, and the funny thing is -- it all still works!

#Whodathunkit?

Awesome post! Very good approach!

This is just so clever. Love it!! I love sarcasm and am shocked that people don't get that either. Oh well.

Keep writing your clever guy.

I agree....Open Houses are probably one of the best networking tools for to meet new prospective clients and capture new business that costs you time, but no $$. ... just need to get out there and make it happpen!

Are there really agents who think having an open house will sell the listing? I have always known that rarely happens (not never, just rarely). You have open houses to 1) satisfy the seller that you are trying to sell the house and 2) to pick up new buyers or other potential listings from buyers that need to sell their homes before they move, and 3) generate name-recognition and awareness from the neighbors and looky-loos to generate long-term business.

So, the moral of the story as i read it, slowly and twice, was that - Open Houses can be annoying and dreadful, but its a money machine because like myself, alot of us pick up buyers and listings from just being in the right place at the right time?

Yep...I was a victim too...Had to read it twice before I got the correlation!

Nice post, Tim!

I didn't read it slowly enough the first time through, so I didn't catch the irony. Then on the second read the irony was so thick I was more than a little ashamed I missed it before. Of course, the shame probably has more to do with my Catholic upbringing than anything else, though. { 8-)>

I'm guessing many others share my love/hate relationship with open houses. It seems to me that most of them don't pay off because the looky loos don't turn into clients and keep me just busy enough I can't do anything productive. Then, when I do get a live buyer, most are already represented so there's no opportunity to turn them into clients.

However, every now and then I do get a client from an open house I wouldn't have gotten otherwise. And the reward is more than enough to make up for all the "wasted" time and effort spent at open houses. Plus, at least in my marketplace, sellers still expect an occasional open house. So even though the statistics show that houses rarely sell through open houses, my sellers feel like I'm making a reasonable effort to leave no stone unturned.

And I'd like to give a special shout-out to Karen Crowson, in Livermore, CA, for mentioning that she referred the open-house buyer to another agent. I know most agents don't have a problem with dual agency, but I think it's never---okay, I'll say "rarely" in an attempt to stave off the devil's-advocate responses---in the consumers' interest to work with a dual agent.

But you wouldn't choose to work with a lawyer who is also representing the person on the other side of a legal, personal, or professional conflict. Even if that lawyer stayed perfectly neutral, there will almost certainly be times when you would want his or her professional advice or need his/her expertise to help you turn information into knowledge so you could make the best decisions at every turn. But a dual-agency lawyer couldn't help you in any way that could potentially hurt the other party. This same rule applies to us whenever we practice dual agency.

Our real estate clients deserve nothing less than we would ask for ourselves. Kudos, Karen, for giving up a shot at the double-dip. If I ever have a client referral in the Livermore area, I now know who I'll get in touch with!

I should have added the following in the post: If you strongly believe that open house do not work, they will not work. If you strongly believe that open houses do work, they will work.

I will put several agents in one neighborhood. They all see...to a degree....the same people. It is amazing the difference in the replies from the agents. Three weekends ago, three agents had open houses in the same neighborhood. One said she had a great open house and had 12 people show up. One said it was not that good as there were only 10 that showed up. The third said she had a great open house and is showing property to one and had set up an appointment to see their home to list it. The agent has since listed the home this past week and has put a contingent contract in on a to be built home. Not sure if it will all turn out good, but guess which of the three is my top agent?????

Excellent post. I saw a post recently that stated...most of the agents in my area do not do open houses...just the top selling agents do them...hmmmmmmmmm a correlation???

I completely agree. I only pick up a solid buyer or listing every 2nd or 3rd open house that I do.

I think that I will stop showing clients around to see homes as well, because half the time, they just want to see more, which is such a drag. And some times, they end up not buying anything at all!

While I'm at it, I think I'll stop taking listings, because sellers always want too much for their properties, and sometimes, the deals actually FALL APART. Definitely not worth my time.

I'm going to stop marketing to my farm, because it never gets my phone ringing with someone who needs to sell immediately and at whatever price I recommend.

And I'm definitely going to stop calling prospects to check in with them. If I have to call them to get them to buy something, then they're not worht my time. It's just no way to live your life.

So, my plan is to lock myself in my office from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday (with an hour lunch and 2 breaks), and sit in front of my computer waiting for the phone to ring while blogging.

LFM

Excellent article. Reading carefully is definately good advice.

It's also great if you have a supportive lender who can accompany you while doing the open houses. They can off the borrower options for financing and help them realize the reality of ownership. On a personal note, my realtor sold my home to the 2nd couple who visited the open house she held AND she gained a few new clients.

This is a great post, well-written and certainly witty! I've tried holding an open house and have a really hard time getting the nosy neighbors and looky loos to sign my registration book. Any advice on how to get more leads and contact information from the gawkers?

I send invitations to the nosy neighbors for a "private preview" of my Open Houses for one hour before the general public is invited. Nosy neighbors are very special!!

Just participated in a Keller Williams Charleston and Greater Charleston SC Open House EVent... Over 100 homes were open this weekend with KW signs everywhere.... One couple is coming back this evening... another couple is now working with me as their buyers agent.... My colleague who sat another one of my listings on my behalf also had a similar experience.... To view links to the KW site page set up for the event please visit my latest blog post at http://www.heatherlord.com/blog

I tweeted the event and provided links specific to my properties... Tim as you have noted - positive thinking / actions beget postive reactions...

Hey I bet the balloons that covered the neighborhood didn't hurt either.....

Heather Lord ( Keller Williams Charleston West)

Tim,

Love your sense of humor in this post. I do think a lot of agents will miss your point and actually think you are against open houses. Those are the same agents who don't get the connection between social marketing a building a real estate business. I teach a webinar about how to do strategic open houses, where you think about how to promote the open house, the relationship building activities that you need to do at the open house, and finally how do you follow up to turn those who came into real prospects.

Most agents just want to show up and watch TV and are then complain the open house was a waste of their time.

I will look forward to reading more of your posts.

Greg Herder

www.Twitter.com/GregHerder

Tim,

Great Post. Love the sarcasm

I still don't get it. Can you type slower...

We bought our first home through an open house (before I was licensed and MLS were on line).

After being a licensee for 17 years now, I now know the importance of holding an open house for the public, be it for nosy neighbors, looky loos and drive bys. But only if the seller wants it and only for the first 2 weeks that it was posted active on MLS. After 2 weeks that I don't have offer is the time I will re-check what the market is doing with that listing, as maybe we need to make adjustments. And since the property is posted on line, I will tell my seller that the property is open house 24/7 anyway, that way, I am not expected to hold open houses after open houses.

I got business out of open houses, I made some friends out of it, and made open houses as part of the marketing package deal! And if I do, I don't do anything else but greet and welcome everyone who walks in and thank them for coming in and tell them to call everyone who might think of buying or selling in their neighborhood and help me sell the house.

I sometimes bake cookies, and they remember!

We bought our first home through an open house (before I was licensed and MLS were on line).

I sometimes bake cookies, and they remember!

That was hilarious- and true! I have always thought open houses just don't work - to sell that house specifically. I can't say (at this point) that I have picked up any new customers from Open Houses either. It is a wonderful chance to catch up on some reading! Plus, it makes my sellers happy. Thanks for the blog. I may have to use portions of it at some point!

Reason Number 4: I have several times sold a property in less than 30 days via an open house. Then the Seller thinks you didn't really earn your commission. They do pay it though. They just grumble a bit.

I loved this post.

We sell bank owned homes for a listing agent. We sell a lot of homes, and most come from open houses, or lists of people we have from previous open houses.

One thing I have learned is you must be very aware of the market and always be willing to change. What is working right now might not in 6 months. Looky loo neighbors are buying homes from me as well, because they are so freakin cheap.

Tim: OMG we couldn't agree more. In fact . . . (cue dramatic music) . . . we've even sold three of the open houses we've sat in the last three years! Heavens, why would we want to continue to hold open houses?!

It's all part of the world of real estate. Floor time, open houses, cold-calling, door knocking, mailers: Odds are that every now and then you will be fortunate and pick up a REAL buyer or seller. The easiest of all is to do a great job each and every time and the referrals will come to you!

Tim, I loved it. I gotta tell you though. When I read the subject I was really hoping that you had really come up with three reasons not to hold open houses. I knew better, but I was hopeful. As much as I know how important they are and I do them I was hoping for a better alternative.

I hate it when people come into open houses and i have to tell them about all the current market data. Demostrate how much i know about our current local market. 3 buyers this year!

Another thing I hate is Floor duty. I have to get all my paper work in order while i'm doing nothing. 2 more buyers this year!

What a waste of my time

Wow! I am AMAZED at how many folks didn't read S L O W L Y and just didn't get it!

Great post Tim!

Tim I agree entirely. My first year in real estate I was trying to build up my sphere of influence, work on a database, build a web site and the only time I had to do this was during my Open Houses. Visitors just didn't take the hint even when I had my laptop open and was working, with paperwork spread everywhere......sheesh.....

If I had been left alone no telling how much business I could have generated not the mere 85-90 of my transactions during that year from open houses. Instead of being rookie of the year that year I could have been rolling in the dough. Anyway I just had to get this off my chest. Yeah I recommend to all the agents locally not to hold open houses......that leaves more for me...

Loved your blog entry...I too have heard the same arguments from agents in my office but open houses work for me too. I have sold 4 homes myself from the open house...and getting to talk to all those "nosey neighbors"...priceless

Funny post! I think I'm one of those looky loos...

Open Open Open! Why would I do Opens??? Good thing I can read S-L-O-W-L-Y!!!

I have two reasons NOT to hold an open house....family and life. I realize I'll be lambasted for this thinking, but then again I'm proud I've always looked around at what everyone else is doing and then I do something else.

I certainly don't fault anyone for wanting to spend their time with someone else's family rather than their own, but to say that those of us who set our seller's expectations properly up front and hold true to our priorities "don't get it" is more of the traditional thinking that has permeated this industry.

Just my 1.5 cents worth.

Hi Tim,

I read the headline and was getting ready to disagree with you completely, but I read the entire thing and between chuckles was glad to see you agree with me! I actually like open houses -- except when no one shows up. Then I have to actually think about WHY no one wanted to visit...was it the curb appeal? Was it the location? Was it my lack of promotion? Or was it just lack of parking?? (That happens!)

Anyway, great post, love the irony, and was amused at those that just read headlines then post responses. Hm.

Loved yourd post! Very funny and so true and I laughed even harder cause I wrote my blog post yesterday while doing an open house also. When it gets hot in San Diego like yesterday, people go coastal, so mine was not well attended. I have picked up some great leads doing open houses.

Wouldn't be cool if active rain had a special font for sarcasm? Then we would have to read so slow!

hahahaha Love it!

I thought this was absolutely great! I'm just puzzled by the some of the responses that you received, or maybe I was reading it incorrectly. You have opened my eyes to do MORE open houses. Thanks!

Yes, I caught that tongue-in-cheek writing, although I must admit I thought you were serious initially. I don't care for open houses, as most are a waste of time, but every now and then....

Make sure you post them to Facebook too. I took some clients by an open house that I saw posted on Facebook. I wouldn't make the appointment until they decided for sure they wanted to withdraw from their previous contract after learning the land measurement posted in the MLS was not accurate. I didn't want to get the sellers hopes up. However, when I learned of the open house, I decided to call the agent and tell her I was bringing them by. Sure enough, they decided to withdraw from their previous contract before we went to the open house, AND they wanted to buy the house we saw at the Open House.

Everyone says open house are great. BUT I think you are right they are waste of time. I only do them if I have to. Anyway thanks for the info.

Ben

Great commentary. I totally believe in open houses as that is how I have found some of my best clients. Especially here in AZ we get a lot of second home buyers and they come here not knowing an agent. Thanks for the laugh. Kudos from a fellow Keller Williams believer.

Great posts. They have worked for me. Good way to pick up buyers.

That's not to mention that open houses seem to attract all sorts of weirdos. At least mine do anyways. I stopped doing open houses about 7 years ago for all the above reasons. I do admit I did pick up clients listings, and buyers etc. I think opens are for some agents and not for others. It is a matter or personality etc. I did do well at them but:

One time during a busy open house I was on the main floor welcoming new guests into the house while I heard another set of guests upstairs going through my clients dresser drawers. I could only hear them because my clients had a baby monitor in their master bedroom and the receiver was left on downstairs in the kitchen. I left it on and thought it would be fun to listen what people were saying about the house or me ;-). Good thing I did or else who knows what that couple would have taken.

My last open house I will never forget. It was the last straw!! Again it was a fairly busy open with a bunch of tire kickers and me trying to keep track of everyone and hand out feature sheets etc on the main floor. The home was a large upscale executive property that had been winterized due to the clients vacating and relocating. During the open house some Jerk Off decided to take a massive dump in the ensuite toilet despite the fact that all the taps and toilets had red tape on them with signs that read WATER HAS BEEN SHUT OFF!!! DO NOT USE FIXTURES!! HOME HAS BEEN WINTERIZED!! I tell you this guy or gal ( I think it must have been a guy for sure) had the nerve to take the tape off the toilet seat and do his business without water in the toilet and then leave it that way for me to discover. Anyway .... after my open house I had to drive across town to my own home to get a 5 gallon pail of water and a plunger so I could flush the waist down. As Realtors we get paid well when we sell a home but let me tell you we don't get paid well enough to plunge other peoples crap. After that ordeal I swore I would never do another open house again.... and I never did. In fact after doing hundreds of open house throughout the years I would turn down a listing if a client insisted on one. In my opinion there are more productive ways to sell a clients listing than hold an open house. However I do believe they are good for picking up buyers and other stream of business.... especially when you don't have a plunger in your hands. After selling real estate for awhile now I just realized I could focus my time in other areas and be more productive plus I have flash backs of that nasty toilet that keep me from ever booking another. It's all kind of funny now that I look back but on that day I didn't find it that amusing. I hope my bad experience made someone's day.

Tim

Great post.

I have picked up a few clients during my Open Houses. To me that are productive.

Thanks

I loved this blog! I just had two open houses this weekend. Open House number one produced 7 buyers! Open House number two produced 5 buyers. I want to keep as much of my commission as possible, so a do everything on the cheap. This is my number one way to get listings and buyers. I sell at lot of my own listings this way.

I hear from other agents in my office that they never get anyone to come by. I just do a couple of simple things that I think make a big difference. Number one, I knock on the neighbor's doors and introduced myself, when I get the listing. Most of the time I catch them outside, so it is not very intrusive. They always want to talk. Second, I did purchase a LARGE open house sign and it goes out several days prior to the open house. ( I get lots of nosy neighbors that way) I love being in the listing for several hours, as it helps me really get the feel of the home and I always discover something new about the property. This helps me to tweak my MLS and Brochures. One other thing I do, is I always ask to rent a little real estate for the day, when I put a directional sign out. It gives me an excuse to meet someone and I think it is polite. I always look at the open house, as I am using their home to run my business for the day. This is one of my favorite parts of the "job".

Would love to hear from other agents their tricks of the trade for a successful open house.

I joined Active Rain a while back and I honestly cannot remember what compelled me to do it in the first place. I think somebody said it was *the* place to start in the world of real estate blogging and that was back a long time ago when something called a blog was relatively new.

The emphasis that blogging has received in the real estate profession over the last couple of years has been phenomenol. The communications related to the value of utilizing the new social media online have been right up there with the old stalwart message you see all the time in the real estate industry **Now is the time to buy real estate** regardless of whether it actually is (or was) the time to buy real estate.

I get Active Rain updates (new posts) automatically in my email inbox every day. Once in a while I will open one up when the headline catches my attention as did Tim's with THREE REASONS WHY TO NEVER HOLD AN OPEN HOUSE.

I could not think of three good reasons why not to so I thought I would look at what Tim had to say. I still cannot think of any good reasons why not to, at least that outweigh reasons why it is a good thing to do professionally speaking. I am particularly fond of holding professional open houses for the other real estate professionals in my community whom I treat like clients.

....all with good results.

When I stop on occasion to take a look in the blog spaces, I am truly amazed at how much time is available to some folks chasing the crazy notion of the possibility that there may be some sort of abastract business value based on the concept of "what are you doing right now?"

I would be willing to wager that there has been a LOT more business picked up from open house activity than there ever has been sitting around in the blogospheres.

My two cents....

Funny post...Love your sense of humor! However it is not completely true that an agents attitude towards open houses is what makes them unsuccessful. Yes this can be true but real estate is local and so is the success of open houses. They absolutely do not work in this area. I go through the whole nine yards of preparing for the open house only to have no one show up. It seems the majority of agents in my area agree. This area is mostly rural and spread out which may have something to do with.

LOVE the post! It's great (to those of us that actually read it correctly...)! All I can say is that that's why I don't hold opens in the fall, too many people trying to interrupt my watching of football games. How rude!

:-P

I run in to the same problem here in the Boise area when I do open houses.

I cant stand when people interrupt my lunch consisting of 2 dozen freshly baked cookies! The nerve...lol! Eric

Michael Noel: That is the best line of the year. I am on the floor laughing........

I sold a $430,000 rural house that was just two weeks on the market and it was my first open house at the listing. The buyers said they would not have looked at the house otherwise but I advertised the open house and sparked their curiosity. It was a great commission check.

I do tell my sellers that Open Houses create more leads for Realtors than buyers for their home. Those that see it may talk about it to someone who might be interested. I suggest it may be more profitable for me to hold open a listing that is more expensive than theirs since most lookers will not be able to afford the house they wander into. I do limit the number I do and will not take a listing if the seller wants open houses every week. I also drag my husband or another person along for security.

A broker once told me - if you are not doing anything for business that day hold an open house (preferably on Gulf Blvd - beach property) <g>.

I can hardly type for laughing. This is hilarous and Kim Brown's response was too.

Tim this is "Totally Cool". I so get what you are saying. I have decided not to hold open houses sometime back. But your post just dismissed my idea of possibly doing it again. Thanks for the post. Have a good one.

As someone mentioned, the success of the open-house concept may be partly due to the location; it's quite popular here in the city of Halifax, where folks can do several in a small area. In rural areas, it just may not work.......BUT, then again, it only takes ONE! I'm thinking of a Clint Eastwood line....'do you feel lucky???" Or is there a correlation between luck and opportunity? ;-)

Melva

Great post. Nice job on the feature. I've read you before and expected something funny and sarcastic with the title. Great job on both counts.

I only hold open houses in neighborhoods where I want to pick up Buyers. And I explain everything you've written to my Sellers. There was a REASON for open houses prior to the internet - now they are useless and a waste of time!

Great bait. You sure got a lot of bites. Lighten up people - haven't you heard, the markets improving.

Hi Tim, I figure the responses have been half and half as to whether or not the concept of your blog was for or against "open house" activity. I say for!

I am sitting in one of my listings in Breckenridge, Colorado, right now. Yes, to get exposure to my Seller's little retro cabin, but hoping also to possibly "catch" a Buyer either for this house or another. Buyers in this recession for a second home market are few and far between!

Nancy Yearout

www.realestate-breckenridge.net

Hey Tim:

Nice post on open houses! Mmmmm, it sounds like the open houses will remain in the overall marketing strategy. Hey, I mean geeez can you imagine the Looky loos waiting to buy a house for four months! The nerve of some of these people.....

Great post...I was almost like, dude what are you talking about? But then realized the tongue in cheek! I haven't done many open houses where I am. It's just not safe here in the mountains. Maybe I am cutting off some business that way, but I'd rather feel safe! Oh, and what's up with your comment #188? That's SPAM that's what we call it here on AR, so GET A GRIP!

Tim:

Well played! A good sense of humor goes a long way in our business. Glad to see that yours is well intact!

Good luck.

Rich Bouchner

Commodore Property Group

Regarding "warming the seller's couch with your butt" as being one of the only productive things at an open house....before I went into real estate, I visited an open house in the dead of winter where the agent was sitting on the couch, feet up on the coffee table, watching TV. His greeting for me? A glare -- I was obviously interrupting his day "off." Too funny! Or maybe just pathetic...

I think you hit the nail on the head when you said open houses will work for you if you think they will work for you, and your day will be successful if you make it so. When given lemons, make lemonade!

Love your sense of humour, Tim.

I chuckled through your whole post, but not nearly as much as I laughed through the responses of people who didn't get it. Scary!

Just for those who will never do an open house: hire an agent that will do it for you that loves open houses....or at least likes them. If you do nothing, do not complain when some other agent starts to get listings in the hood. i.e. control your farm, don't let someone take your cattle........

Open houses, I always bring some work and other listings just in case. I stay the whole time. I do have clients that do not want them because of animals or items in the home so I have appointment only. I do miss not holding them guess that puts me in the weird group.

I have to second Tanya's comments above. You are so right: open houses will only work for you if you think that they will. I make mine a fun neighborhood event. People sit around and chat. Have a cookie or two. They talk to me, they talk to each other. It's fun and... THE HOUSE FEELS COMFORTABLE. So the atmosphere is very important.

If the agent does not enjoy an open house, you will not have the right atmosphere. Some folks just don't have the knack, poor things.

Hey there Tim! I really enjoyed this! ...thanks for allowing me to link to my two blogs on OPEN HOUSE ideas! I have found in my 20+ years of lending, is that the unless the Realtor/Seller puts 100% INTO the open house, and TRIES to make it a success...It will not be! I am often shocked at Realtors that dont believe in them! I think sometimes it is merely education, and trying different ideas! AN AD in the paper asking people to show up...just doenst cut it!!

Thanks again! - Bucky

Open house tips #1 Open house tips #2

In my area, #3 happens to me every time. I get nada. nothing. no shows. Then the sellers feel really bad for having me waste the time of the balloons, ads, flyers, etc. I'm not in a metro area where folks are driving around so that may have something to do with it.

Tim--You're very articulate and clever expressing your comments on open houses. I laughed out loud several times, but what you say has another side. As a new agent just breaking into the market, open houses were crucial to me meeting people from individual neighborhoods and getting my name into the market. In my first two years as an agent, every single house that I closed came from a contact that I made at an open house. For me, they were not time wasted or time spent, but time invested that produced a great return. Second, all of the interactions you described that can occur at open houses are part and parcel of being an agent. They can happen anywhere. Skilled agents know how to extricate themselves from dead end conversations without offense or steer the conversation into an interaction that may prove profitable in the future. Again, I would classify your comments as humorous, but hyperbole. But that's what makes something funny--exagerration. I'm just not sure it makes for good advice. I think I'll keep holding them....

Guess I'll add my 2 cents to...

Open houses rarely produce buyers for "The Open House" however it has been known to happen and everyone knows someone that sold a home at an open house but most do not sell the open house themselves.

Open Houses are however a great way to get buyers, if you have not used open houses as a prospecting tool for new clients, you have been wasting your time.

It's a matter of odds and statistics, # of serious buyers visiting open houses, # of people that actually buy an open house, and % of chance that you happen to be working the open house that a serious buyer visits that wants to buy that particular open house. Hmmm...

The odds dictate not to try the hard sell of the "Open House" at the Open House but to try and grab the buyers, the key is to have the finess and know how to filter out the looky loose and nosy neighbors and get the serious buyers ready, willing and able buyers to want to work with you as their agent.

Well done, this one had me smiling...

Tim, Kim has a great idea there! Maybe I'll print tickets for my next event.............

"admit One to 1234 main st Open house"

Maybe you have incorrect expectations. Nationally, I think fewer than 4% of homes sold are from open houses, so I don't hold them to sell that house, I hold them to meet people. When I first got in the business, my training instructor told me, "You need to consider Sun.afternoon a work day." I took that to heart and for the past 15 yrs held upwards of 35 open houses a year. The result is that I do over 15% of my business with people I originally encountered at an open house. To me it's worth 2 hrs on a Sun. and if no one shows, I have a newspaper or a book.

Jim Kouns

Broker, GRI, CRS

Coldwell Banker Lunsford

Muncie, IN

I have listed neighboring homes at open houses, sold homes at open houses and picked up loads and loads of buyers at open houses. Yes, I have had open houses where no body comes, I've had Broker's Open's where no body comes, I've had neighbors come in (and yes they have listed with me) and I've had looky loos and I've converted them to buyers. So, I still have mixed feelings about having open houses!!

Soooo....the (self-selected) jury is in. Open Houses R US.

But let's just keep this among US. If every REALTOR was out holding homes OPEN consistently, it wouldn't work as well for those of us who do.

Here's how to keep home owners from asking you to do an open house...

"Mr. Homeowner, Let me get real with you about open houses. They just don't work." (Explain this however you want to to the home owner..)

"So lets do this if you insist on an open house. Our listing agreement is for 6% correct? I will give you 3% back if you sit on the open house yourself. I will advertise and get the word out. All you have to day is be here, at the open house. If a real buyer does happen to come in (lightning may strike) I will work both sides of the transaction for only 3%. That's how much I believe in what I am saying. If I had an inkling of a thought that an open house would sell your house, I would be doing an open house everyday of the week!"

Open houses are dead and have been for a long time. They died the same day the music died - Bye Bye Ms America Pie!

Just my two cents.

Exposure, exposure, exposure. Open houses are just one tool to accomplish that...for your client's home and for yourself.

My continued "two cents" for the Realtor who thinks because he has sold one house out of the hundreds he has attended:

Open houses work for you IF you look at them as netWORKING events in which you do ALL the marketing to get the whole neighborhood there, ie.., mailers, phone calls, door hangers, food, movie tickets etc (leading to a sale someday in the future.)

However, if you do not intend to WORK it like a networking event then stop doing the open houses. Better yet, spend the 3 hours of open house time lead generating, following up with past clients, sphere of influence, etc.

Just my "two cents" .... again.

As everyone says above...they are a waste of time so if you have time to kill then they're great. I've scheduled most of my open houses during the time I need to get lots of sleep...this way I know I'll be getting uninterrupted sleep for 3 hours..now that's better than taking a tranquilizer:) Seriously..most of the properties we have are vacant and most areas don't even allow signs to be put out or the code violation cops steal them:) The only areas that I'm aware of where open houses are successful are Hawaii and CA. Some areas where I have a distressed property makes it hard just to see the front door from the grass growing too high as well as the interiors aren't the prettiest.

I even tell some sellers that I'll be thanking them instead of them thanking me because I might pick up a client or too that will buy another house from me.

This was a fantasticly witty post! It seems like some people are not quite getting the sarcasm, but I really appreciate your writing and will definitely pass this on to some fellow agents. I for one have gotten some solid leads through open houses and will continue to hold open houses whenever I have the time to do so.

Gotta go - I have some pesky clients who want to buy a house - can't they see I'm busy typing? :*)

Tim,

Very clever and very funny!

It's also a great way to get into the business for those just starting out.

Brian

I've done more than my fair share of open houses and maybe they work in some areas but I have not found them to be very profitable in this area. I will continue holding opens now and then but I think there are better ways to find new clients. On the weekends that I am not holding open houses, I am not at the lake either, I am still working, but at something that I feel is a better use of my time.

I volunteer to do open houses for busy agents and I've met a load of buyers. Great post!

Perhaps I should not be sarcastic in the future..... No, I think I will continue as the replies are better than watching TV! Hey, my new topic! 3 reasons why you should never watch TV? It has a nice ring to it. Just need to think of 3 reasons. Have a great day and chill and relax and watch some TV.......

My open house is short and to the point, 2 hours long and have had some success with getting buyers for other houses, never for the house I was in.

Nvermind. I will continue to do them. Nosy neighbours have sent me clients at least twice....and 15-20% of my business comes from open houses. I must be doing them right!

Yes, ANY marketing method will work at a certain percentage if you do it enough. Please take a look at my blog, "Three reasons you should NEVER walk down Main Street with a sandwich board".

Hahah... at first I was upset about this blog until I read it SLOWLY...

Two weekends ago I picked up 5 new buyer clients and a new listing in a 2- HOUR Open House! And most times I always have someone stop by in the neighborhood to tell me that that either they, their friend, brother, mom, sister, aunt, co-worker is needing to buy or sell a home!

OPEN HOUSES ARE PERFECT TO FIND THE PEOPLE WHO ARE OUT THERE ACTIVELY LOOKING TO MOVE! AND MOST TIMES BEFORE THEY HAVE A REALTOR!

Oh Tim, you poor thing! All those potential clients just stopping by to chitchat and take up your valuable time.... or am I seeing a correlation here??? ;-)

I am being sued by a looky loo who claims that a cat jumped out of a closet, knocked her down, and bit her. She is afte $160k in medical expenses. Hopefully I will get off on summary judgment, but if not, it will go to jury trial. That's one reason why I am not too high on open houses now.

I'm happy to pass this along to all the other agents in my area...more for me!

I'm new and all of my clients come from me holding open REO homes...I love it!

Loved it! I'm a big fan of the open house. (You poor guy, all those nosy neighbors and all cach buyers taking up your time...)

Tim,

Great post! However I do believe in open houses. I've acquired several listings from doing them, and if no one is showing up then I start knocking on neighbors doors and personally invite them over! Some of them usually know a family member, friend or co worker who is looking to move. It's a great way to network in the neighborhood and when its time for them to sell, they just may remember that hardworking agent who was going door to door!

Tim- totally understand your point. Held an open house last week - had too looky loos - both that got the e-mail from me to come. One is a retired couple that I may get some referrals out of at some time, others are good friends that have always wanted to see in the house and this was a perfect opportunity for them to see it with no presure. The rest of the time I spent relaxing and reading a magazine - somethting I don't ge to do often with my husband and 3 year old around!!!

I thought you had lost your mind when I read the heading but I was dead wrong; it was great and funny. And I read it slowly too.

We hold open house every Saturday and Sunday. We rotate with agents in the office or keep each other company during open house. Talking about endless "chit chatting" If the buyers don't we will. Kim's comment was hilarious too. No wonder you had so many comments on this great post.

All right Tim, so here is my two cents, Open Houses do work, but only in my "farm" area, I am very interested in knowing the looky loos, and nosy neighbors, they will probably won't open the door if I go door knocking, but here they are taking a look at what I'm doing... after 24 years in the business, I could not stop doing those time killer open houses! I just love them, my wife and I called them "fishing" one of us is ready to pick up a potential buyer and show other houses in the neighborhood. I can't count the number of times we have sold houses by doing that. Thanks for the post.

Antonio

Tim,

I usually hold them for clients with beach front homes. It is so annoying when someone stops in cause I have to get out of the pool, towel off, tell my friends to turn down the music, open the door, blah, blah, blah, you know what I'm talking about and I feel exactly the same way about these things.

Nice! My wife and I are relatively new agents and open houses are our life-blood. Plus, as a added benefit, open houses help us network with the agents that are busy and have the listings. I doubt we'll ever sell one, but as newbees, we can't survive without them!

Sold my very first house 3 days after my first open to buyers I met that day.

JUN

Tim,

Your post, obviously tongue-in-cheek is a great example of open houses being a lead generator. I've onlt sold 2 open house but got lots of leads.

Totally cute! Thanks for the laugh! :-)

I already responded to this very funny post but I got to thinking more specifically about the success rate of varying marketing activities. I've only been in the business for a little less than 2 years but here is where I can attribute my deals. I've had 13 closed transactions (sad, I know).

Direct snail-mail (Calendars, Just Listed, Just Sold, self-promotion): 0
Networking groups (physical - not online): 1
Social Online Networking: 0
Email Newsletters: 2
Blogging: 1
Open Houses 2 (neither was the subject house)
Sitting home on Sundays when I could be hosting an open house: 0
Floor-Time: 3
Newspaper ad: 0
Referral from other Realtors: 2
Referrals from family/friends: 1
Handing out Biz cards to strangers that I meet in checkout lines or elsewhere: 0
Repeat biz: 1

I'll not be stopping any of these activities in the near future - you never know what will work - in any industry it's important to have a mix. The things that have had zero deals tied directly to them do serve the purpose of reminding people who I am and what I do.

The piece that I can't quantify off the top of my head is this. Aside from the closed deals - ALL of my current buyer and seller prospects that I am working with came from these activities as well. With the exception of newspaper adsl I can say that I have increased my prospect list from everyone one of these. Looking specifically at open houses, I have several active buyer prospects that I am working with, including one who's price point is almost 3X the average sale in our market.

Hi Tim...just got done reading this post that I started on Sunday. I really am a slow reader!.

I agree with nosy neighbors part because why would they know of anyone who was thinking of moving in to the neigborhood? I mean they probably do not have family, friends or coworkers who would want to live there.

Great post and very very accurate. Never had an open house that I did not accomplish something.

Great Post! Thanks Tim! I always get new prospects fom holding open houses! Very Creative way of getting that point across I must add!

I also had the position of no Open Houses, but that has changed because I truly now believe it depends on the market you are in. As a broker in Atlanta, Georgia that is my position No Open Houses, but as an Associate Broker with Long and Foster in Northern Virginia I am Yes to Open Houses. The market in Northern Virginia/Metro D.C. area has streams of buyers come through Open Houses and I have picked up a large buyer on an Open House.

Since coming to Northern Virginia all those things that got me business when I started in 1994 works so don't dismiss simple marketing of a home you never know what surprise may come from that Open House.

Keep an open mind.

Clearly, this is a tongue in cheek article...The data supports that approximately %80 of homes purchased in 2009 involved buyers who had attended open houses...They did not buy the house that was held open, but they were shopping...Where else will you be able, a very low cost, to mingle with potential buyers? As for neighbors, I love it when they come by; in fact, I always invite neighbors...When they see the great work I do on that open house, I often get calls from them (sometimes months later) inviting me to a listing appointment...Hey...it's a bona fide source of business...

I have 1 agent in the office who LOVES to do open houses and is good at snagging buyers for future sales. I don't think I've ever sold a house through an open house, but I have sold buyers houses later.

Boy are you ever right. Get an open house, get those future prospects, actually talk to people they understand you have common sense and are sympathetic, genial etc. Who needs that crap. There are far better ways to find business. maybe pay one of those scammers that want to sell you leads, who knows one of them may just be one of those nosy neighbors that were bugging you when it was free.

I agree completely. Especially when you door knock those pesky neighbors. They call their friends and family, then they show up. And if you are silly enough to use directional signs from major intersections even more looky loos show. Even those unrepresented buyer-type people.

Yes, I have to admit I have sold (double ended) some of my listings, built great rapport and showed more value to my sellers, but it is not for everyone. It is only for agents who want to make money.

More seriously:

As a Broker, I have asked agents "How many buyers are going to walk in to your home/office and say "sell me a home". Every one said none. Then I ask, how many will say with their arrival at a open house "sell me a home". Answer: most of them. You can even do more marketing while in the home. Call expires, answer sign and ad calls while in the open house. Oops you made money!

Great article! I only read it to see the crap agents excuse for being lazy. You got me.

I read this post at the same time I was having my first

cup of coffee. So the sloooooooooowly, didn't register, although,

I was thinking several times throughout the read, "and this would be

bad why??" LOL... So I suggest you add a warning for die-hard coffee drinkers,

that they should finish a cup or two before attempting to get the message

of your post. Otherwise, they may believe you are highly annoyed when a neighbor

comes over to have you list their house when you are trying to send a "whaasuuup"

to a friend by email. :-D Great post.... on the second read (for some of us)...

Tim,

Great post and I totally agree with you... I've not only aquired new clients from opens, but actually sold houses that I was holding open. They are not a waste of time, but rather A) demonstrates to your seller that you are actively promoting their home, B) Puts you front and center in the minds of the neighbors that will be listing their home in the future and C) gives you the opportunity to interact with genuine buyers.

Are there looky loos and nosy neighbors? Absolutely, but eventually they will buy and sell a home... and I want to be their agent!

This post cracked me up!

By the way, I had a colleague to hold one of my listings open last week, the neighbors stopped by when he was there, chit chat with the agent, ask where I am, chit, chat more and call me a few days later and .....ask me to list their house!

This is scientific proof that outsourcing open houses works too :)

Tim--This was too funny and correlative throughout! As someone said, I am amazed how many didn't get your sarcasm. Regarding posting a blog on the 3 reasons never to watch TV--well, there are more reasons than just 3... Perhaps Realtors who watch TV should switch to open houses right after they brush up on their dialogues/scripts so that they know how to obtain good business through open house. Just a thought...

Dawn Thomas | Silicon Valley
http://www.TheDawnThomasTeam.com

My wife and partner, CJ Jenkins, is the Most Exalted High Priestess of Open Houses in southern Nevada County. Rarely does a weekend pass without her holding one or two or even three of these useless events. She also does balloons and treats for each open house. And, OMG, she sweeps me along in her wake, setting up signs, lugging coolers of lemonade, and, sometimes, sitting an open house (gulp!) all by myself. Work, work, work. What a nut! (Oh, by the way, she is one of the top listing agents in the county.)

I agree that you get the looky loos from the neighborhood, but since I've actually made a couple sales through Open Houses on waterfront listings... I still will do them for the unique property, but not routinely.

Hello Tim,

I too was ready to add a few words to your post when I read the headline. I am glad I slooowwwed down to read it through.

I love to do open houses in my area, the people I meet from all over the world is amazing....and yes, have had sales with people that have come in. To all the agents who don't do open houses, please call me and I will have an open house for you! ^_^

I think it is a great way to find clients and keep your head in the business.

I do open houses because it makes my clients happy and most of the time I get an afternoon alone w/peace and quiet to catch up on computer work or read my Sunday paper. If I was home I'd be tending to my child and have to cook dinner, this way my darling husband has dinner ready when i get home from a hard days work! LOL!

Tim,

An excellent post!!! Open houses are a drudgery but if you can sell that one, get buyers, and get additional listings, how great is that!!! Love your sarcasm and look forward to more LOL.

open houses SUCK! I hate them and most of my sellers hate them. Waste of time.

Finally! someone who gets it!!!

Thanks for the post and verifying exactly what I was thinking.

we all hate them too, and we get many buyers, sellers, and networks of people to work with from them... and they bug us too, and hey, wait, actuially, they are not so bad... eh?

Nice post... fun and smart...

I love this active rain so much...... My next blog will be 3 reasons why to never ever go to a grocery store. No.....people would not get that one either.

Cheerio........

Tim, reading slowly is like eating slowly; one gets to experience all the nuances. Great post!

Tim, You are funny! I read your title and thought "Is he for REAL?... Open Houses are GREAT!"... and then I read your post. Loved it.

I think it's funny that about one in 5 of these responses have no idea what this post is really about...

Tim great post. You perfectly capture the attitude of the agents who just don't get it.

I've been to countless open houses where the agent sits there with all the lights off, except in the room he's sitting in. His coat is thrown over a dining room chair, his newspaper is all over the coffee table and he's too busy on his crack berry to acknowledge anyone that walks in.

I've decided not to hire many agents based on how I've observed them handling their open houses.

I also hired one agent because I met her at an open house and loved how she handled people... highlighting the home's features, discreetly prequalifying them but thru casual conversation, etc. She got to sell two listings for me (one of these she double ended), plus help me buy two other properties, all in 5 years.

I also found my current home by seeing it on an open house. I put in an unconditional offer within 24 hours and all my agent had to do was write up the deal.

JUL

Lovely, ironic, tongue in cheek post, with lots of great points! I appreciated the way you went about this --and enjoyed reading some of the comments and the variety of responses. have to say - I didn't read ALL 268 - but a majority

Open Houses. In my first year in Real Estate I think almost every non-sphere client came from an Open House.

I would love to hold an "open house" for commercial properties.

OMG you can tell who ACTUALLY read your post! ROFL! I'm in complete agreement with you. Even if nobody comes, it's a great time to catch up with keeping in touch...or is there a correlation?!

Sharon

JUL

Definitely, buyers AND sellers from my open houses! Great time to chat with people about real estate!

Ya never know WHO you are going to meet! Love your sarcasm.

JoAnn Srein

Great title; when I heard you were with Keller Williams I just had to find out why a KW agent would never hold an open house. Great play on play and I have sold a home directly from an open house so it is not impossible. Love the business from an open house and when no one comes by it is great to catch up with my sphere. Have a great 4th of July weekend; I hope you are not doing an open house.

Loved the answer to the anti-Open House crowd! While the primary objective is to showcase and sell the listing, open houses are also showcasing me and my skills as a Realtor. Virtually every open house I've had has led to something positive in my business. Sometimes its a new buyer who visits my listing, stikes up a conversation and eventually becomes a client. Sometimes its meeting other professionals who become helpful allies in growing my business (I met my favorite recommended lender at one of my open houses and he takes great care of several of my clients). And sometimes, yes, sometimes, I open the door for the perfect buyer for my listing. It has happened. I had a beautiful listing in my neighborhood last summer. The buyer? Well, they were so-called "nosy neighbors" just stopping by out of interest in neighborhood offerings and fell in love with the house and bought it. And my listing clients? Well, they were the nosy neighbors who came to my open house for a prior listing I had on the same street. NN/LL can be a great marketing tool - they deserve love and respect and as many of the cookies I put out for them.

Hi Great post on Open Houses! I tell my sellers the reason above in addition to letting them know if I hold a open house it basically for the seller.

Rather depends on where the open house is, out in the suburbs you are lucky if you get one person through the door.

JUL

GREAT post Tim...I read it s-l-o-w-l-y and loved it!

The comments were almost as fun!!

That motivated me to call my clients to set up an Open House schedule for July. Creative way to get the message across. Thanks

Thanks for all the replies. This has been an incredible experience. I love reading the replies of people now more than the posts. Maybe I should increase the font even more for Read Slowwwlllyyy, but those replies were the best, so perhaps I will let it be.

Thanks Tim

JUL

Thanks Tim and everyone that replied. Fabulous comments. Looking forward to more open houses!

JUL

I soooo got it the first time. Seems to be a big problem people not paying attention to the details. Tim is correct. The nosy neighbors and the loos have a unique potential for all kinds of business. How could you possibily make any of these connections watching football on the sofa. Open houses are a good way to get your name out there, provide information (with out paying postage!!) and to maximize your potential for new business. And if no real buyers come around, well a nosy neighbor works for me!!

Tim,

I read very slowly...... I got it!!!! Buttttt, I've had a friend who was "accosted" (verbally, but convinced him to leave!) and I'm very leery of being alone in a Highrise, no neighbors, etc... Pretty risky business....

Hilarious! Love that cheeky humor. Great Post!!! And soooo true.

House Photographer: www.art-impressions.blogspot.com

JUL

Kathy - being accosted at an open house is certainly a risk. Is it any more risky than taking a stranger in your car. Or being alone with a stranger at a vacant house on a showing. Or having an after hours meeting at your office with a client.

I, personally avoid taking people in my own car the first time I meet them. That's probably because when I was in my 20s (about 100 years ago) I sold Chevrolets and I was hijacked by a guy who I took for a test drive in a 72 Corvette. We drove around the block, then he turned a corner and drove up the interstate for about 10 miles or so hitting 110 MPH. He breezed right pass a State Trooper speed trap and they chased us for a couple of miles, then he pulled over. I was mighty scared. The dealership then set up a policy of no test drives on Vettes.

You have to do what makes you feel comfortable and I'm sure that if you researched it, you'd find cases where Realtors were indeed attacked at open houses. I'd bet you dollars to donuts, though, that statistically you do other things in your life that are more likely to cause you harm - everyone does. Driving a car while talking on a cell phone? Making a left turn onto a busy street into traffic because no one is letting you in? Swimming in the Atlantic Ocean where our friends the sharks also swim? Spending too much time exposing yourself to cancerous UV rays at the beach?

Obviously I don't know if you do any of those things - but my point is, that if you think open houses aren't a good marketing idea, then you shouldn't do them, but there likely are many riskier things in life.

I hate to hear stories like that, but that is the real world. Obviously anyone who has been in such a situation will have emotional scars that is difficult to overcome. We have our agents put themselves in situations where the possibility of any negative consequences are reduced. Buyer's agents need to get a copy of the buyer's driver's license before showing homes, and open house agents are to call a contact upon an open house visitor. Added precautions are always recommended..

JUL

Spencer from Zillow here.

I'm obviously not a real estate agent, but I do go to several open houses each week. I love going to open houses because I'm a real estate junkie, and I like meeting agents.

I agree with a lot of what has been written here, but I wanted to offer one other perspective -- while obviously open houses do help sell houses, and they do help get buyers when you meet them during sitting the open house, I also believe that you can get listings from open houses.

For example, in my neighborhood in Seattle, I've noticed that Kathryn Hinds (from Windermere) and Wendy Lister (Coldwell Banker Bain) both seem to work their tails off -- they're ALWAYS hosting open houses (or having someone else sit their opens!). To a potential seller, this means a lot. Sellers want to work with someone who is going to work hard for their listing, and for better or for worse potential sellers perceive opens to be evidence of elbow grease and shoe leather in the world of real estate. When neighbors see a nearby listing that's never open, I think they perceive that listing agent to not be working hard for the seller.

Bottom line: if I were an agent, I'd definitely do opens.

See you Seattle agents on Sunday. :)

Each agent has their own particular strategy on how they want to market themselves. One is not doomed for failure if they don't do open houses. This is merely a means that is commonly knocked down for being a failure; and, the point of the post is merely that a change in the mindset on OPEN HOUSES will allow for a success in open houses. That is it...

JUL

Tim. I can understand your frustration. Open Houses have led to an overflow of business and clients for myself as well. Geez!

JUL

Tim, cleaver writing! Very enjoyable. I am sure most of us opened it to find out why we should not be at an open house on the weekend and instead be with our families.

JUL

I just got a listing from a Nosy Neighbor. They popped in curious about the neighbors (my open house) home, why? Because they wanted to sell theirs..

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