I couldn't sleep last night so I jotted down a few ideas for interesting Open Houses. I hope you enjoy them and find a few useful. Let me know if you use any ideas and how they work out?
Don't make buyers feel rushed. Typically Open Houses fall on Saturday and Sunday within a small timeframe. I never quite understood this. My husband and I have bought and sold over eleven homes since 1995 and when it was time to shop for one, we would rush around like crazy to see as many as possible without having the luxury of really enjoying each property.
Hold a Friday evening open house, create a mood with lighting in the landscape, candles, etc. serve seasonal refreshments. Have bottles of water with a picture of the house on the label along with the MLS number and your contact information. You can purchase waterproof labels for both inkjet and laser printers and create them on your home computer. The easiest bottles I find, to remove the original label from is Target's brand Archer Farms.
Depending upon the Seller's budget, or your confidence level in the asking price and market, you may want to consider holding a themed or catered Open House.
You may also want to spread the word in the neighborhood of the upcoming Open House. They may have friends or family members who wish to buy in the area. Word of mouth is an amazing tool. You can even invite the "locals." You never know when they might pass along what they saw to a co-worker or another casual acquaintance. Back in the day, the only people Realtors wanted at Open Houses were actual buyers. In today's market, the more people visiting the more interest is stirred up. You can reach neighbors for very little money by having post cards printed up and hand-deliver them. Vista Print, an online printing company, often has sales for up to 500 full-color glossy postcards for free. All you pay is the shipping, ranging from $6 to $12 for rush delivery.
In Florida, during the summer months, offer iced tea and lemonade or fresh squeezed orange juice. We did this with fruits from the actual tree in the Seller's yard. Buyers were really "wowed" by it.
In late fall you may want to offer spiced apple cider to give the "feeling" of fall. Since we don't really have a chill in the air until much later in the year, many people like the idea of fall. You can create the feeling of a cozy fall day for visitors.
It goes without saying that if the property has an amazing view of sunset - you must hold your Open House during that time so buyers will see what they can enjoy every night if they buy that house.
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