The Delay - Front Door Immediate Impact

The Delay - Front Door Immediate Impact

Copyright (c) 2011, Deanna and Jim's GOLD Team

The buyer's agent walks up the front steps.  Mr. and Ms. Buyer are close behind.  Now The Delay: the agent rings the doorbell, and while waiting for the owner to open the door starts working on the the lockbox to get the key.

After a few moments The Delay is over. The door is opened by the owner or the agent and the buyers step in.

What were the buyers doing during The Delay?  They may have been standing in front of the front door, waiting patiently, perhaps distracted by their children, maybe chatting.

What were the buyers SEEING during The Delay?  Their immediate surroundings, of course.  Although the probably weren't paying attention their roving eyes noted the front door, its knocker (if any), the door knob, the handle, the door sill, the sidelight windows flanking the door, the transom window over the top of the door, the porch pillars, the house light by the door and everything in the immediate vicinity.

And what condition were these environs?  Was the area dirty, water-spotted, decorated by an occassional cobweb or insect remains?

Or was the door resplendent in its gleaming fresh paint or varnish?  Were the metal items new and sparkling?  Was the glass clean?  Did the outside entry feel like it had just been cleaned by like the front door of a shop owned by a meticulous shopkeeper.

The unconscious impressions made while waiting at the door are the second impression a buyer gets (after the curb view driving up).  They are unconsciously submerged by all the memories of the interior viewing.  Yet they have a powerful impact on determining how excited about a home prospective buyers are.

If you are selling it is worth taking the time to pull into your drive as if you didn't live there, walking to your front door and then standing there for 2-3 minutes pretending you are curious about the house and looking for positive or negative clues as to how well its owner maintained it.

You need to learn to look with the Buyer's Eyes!