How Effective Are YOUR Open Houses?

How Effective Are YOUR Open Houses?  

Every time I take a listing I always explain to the sellers that I don't do a ton of open houses.  My strategy is to advertise one usually when the property is new to the market and then I will do additional ones if there are price adjustments.  Why?  Because open houses don't typically sell your house.  I've sold 1 house in 7 years from an open house.  Don't get me wrong, open houses are great for lead generating since the buyers come to you, but that's not what typically gets my homes sold.  

I sit down with my sellers and explain that they have less than a 3% chance of their home selling from an open house, but we try all avenues in our marketing plans.  I market properties in some pretty small towns that don't always have a ton of sales in them and I did an open house this past weekend.  We had 3 couples come through and 2 of them have called back to further discuss the listing and to potentially setup 2nd showings.  I thought this was great until my seller was dissatisfied with the turnout.  They felt there should have been more people.  In the town that their home is located there have been a total of 8 single family home sales in the past 6 months ranging in price from $61,250 to $226,500.  They have a very lovely home priced at $289,000.  

In doing some research on some open house statistics I came across a few sites quoting NAR statistics.  I found it interesting that the Survey of Home Buyers and Sellers didn't even have open houses as a category anymore for where buyers found the home that they bought.  That means that there was such a small percentage that it didn't even make the charts.  Here are 

the results:

• 90% of buyers begin their home search on the Internet
• 36% will find their home on the Internet
• 36% will find their home through the help of a realtor,
• 12% from a yard sign
• 6% from a friend, neighbor or a relative.

That covers ninety percent. Another 5%, will purchase new construction from a home builder or the builder’s agent.

What are you finding when you're doing open houses?  How many people does it take to make a good open house?  In a town with only 8 sales in 6 months and 29 competing homes for sale currently, I was pleasantly surprised to have 3 couples come through with 2 seeming very interested.  

 

THIS BLOG WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY:
Kathleen Cooper
RE/MAX Professional Associates |Team Leader of JCKC REALTY |New Agent Productivity Coach
508-365-3567
www.JCKCRealty.com
www.Facebook.com/JCKCRealty

 

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