Jennifer:

1. Always tell Sellers that Open Houses are for the Agent's benefit - not theirs.
2. If the Sellers insist on Open Houses - make sure they are off property during the Open House.

Statistics show that perhaps 1 in 100 houses sells as a result of an Open House.  Not good odds for the Seller.

I'm not sure that I agree with you Tony. In my experience, homeowners are REALLY EXCITED about your open house - they spend all day Saturday getting ready for it and if you're one minute late, they're hysterical. If you leave five minutes early, they're upset. They really put a lot of stock in your open house, right or wrong, and I'd rather just provide good customer service to them, rather than argue with them about my motives.

I've tried to share the grim statistics about open houses, but every seller knows someone who sold their house (with multiple offers!) at an open house... If a seller wants you to do an open house and he believes it is useful, I have no problem doing it for him. He's paying me good money to market his home.

Everyone has their own style and this is mine. It works for me!

Jennifer - Glad to hear it works for you.  It seems like the Sellers who insist on being there for the Open Houses are the same ones who take it upon themselves to try and "sell" the house to those who venture inside.  Tony tells me that he's seen this scare Buyers away from the property!

Did I say somewhere that the sellers were going to be home? Absolutely NOT! I would never do an open house if the sellers insist on helping out. Egads... Does this really happen? (silly question, of course it does).

I will not even take a listing if the seller insists on being home for all showings.

Great blog Jennifer; people that do open house need to remember their obligations to their sellers and try to sell the house they've been hired to sell before trying to turn visitors into prospects for other listings.

I've always thought this practice stunk a lot.

After all, how in good conscience can you say: "Mr. Seller, I'm going to have an open house and get this house sold for you." on one hand and out of the other side of your mouth you say to a open house visitor "Yep, this one needs a lot of work and is overpriced but I've got this sweet little 3 bedroom......................."

During an initial listing appoitment I go over the things I won't be doing and explain why to my sellers.

Public open houses are first on the list followed by no newspaper ads. After you explain the reasons why most of my sellers are glad to not have a public open house.

I do thing open houses during the week for your fellow Realtors can be effective and you if serve some snacks or a light lunch you'll usually get a big turnout.

I received an offer from my open house last Sunday...It was accepted Yesterday...

I recieved a call from my partner,Katy while I was doing my 2nd open house last Sunday.  She said that a couple is at her open and said that they were late getting to the one I had earlier that day. Katy asked if I wouldn't mind going back to my earlier showing to let the couple look at our listing...They wrote an offer the next day!! 

I know many open houses go buy without a sell, but who knows, when the home does receive an offer who is to say that this person didn't stop by your showing?  They were working with an agent, liked your listing, but just had not made up their minds yet? 

Homes do sell from open houses, and yes, agents get unattached buyers as well..

It's a win-win situation..

I LOVE OPEN HOUSES!!

I appreciate what Jennifer has to say about doing an "open house" and find that it also rings true in my experience.  We make commitments and promises to our sellers when we are asking for their listing and they should expect us to do our best to sell their home during the open house.

My approach is low key...no sign-in required, just a friendly smile and a thank-you for stopping by.  If they ask questions, I give them answers.  I have had quite a few people call me after an open house and ask for help.

Keep up the good posts.

Public open houses are the biggest waste of time orgainized real estate has ever come up with.

Having said the above I also sold an open house at the open house...........................once......................................about 20 years ago.

And if I still had them I would expect to sell another one sometime.

However we need to not forget our seller clients who own the house we have open and who are depending on us to get it sold. Is using their house to pick up other buyers really doing the right thing by them???

Not having public open houses is one of the things I tell my seller we're not going to do during the listing interview. Most of them are releived and glad we're not going to do that.

The ones that insist on having them can hold their own or find another listing agent.

Yes, I will be doing an open house tomorrow. I guess it's more of a courtesy to my sellers that they see me actually do something other than list it on 180 websites.

I think the success (or not) of Open Houses really depends on the area in which you work.  In my area, agents are generally not very gung-ho over Open Houses and claim limited succsess (though I do see a few agencies with open houses occasionally.)

Jennifer, the most important words you said to me were "... is to remember that some of your visitors may be observing your behavior to evaluate you as a potential listing agent for their home, should they decide to sell." I never thought of it in that light. Sure, Open Houses are for the benefit of the Realtor but I hold Open Houses to sell the property that day. Of course that is not something that happens very often yet it is still the goal. I do advise sellers that very few homes sell during an open house but in a buyer's market it doesn't hurt to get the exposure. I am on my way to another Open House now. My sellers are out of town residents so they will never see me there. But that is OK because I know I am working for my sellers!

Interesting. I'm not sure if it's because I'm an exclusive buyer's agent, but so many of my clients tell me that they send testers to their open houses. Whether it is family or friends, they say they try to see how the agent at the Open House responds to a variety of questions.

My favorite comment is one I hear often. "I hate it when an agent spends more time trying to figure out if I have a home to sell rather than telling me the benefits of the home I'm standing in"

Maybe the reason the success rate for some Open Houses is so low is because the agents doing them are not trying to sell the home that is open. I just know that many of my clients use Open Houses to see a home they like for a second time - often with friends in order to get a second opinion.

Always remember... Big Brother (or Darling Seller) is watching you...

I find this interesting.  I have been saying this for years and sellers always seem to know it, but it's the agents that I talk to that seem resistant.  I do have an occassional open house, but I am always up front with the seller that I while I will do everything that I can to promote their home, most houses (in my experience ONLY) don't sell at the open house.  BUT, I do believe that the exposure can be beneficial because sometimes relatives (mom & dad) or friends are out looking and call the buyer to let them know what they saw.

I don't use a sign-in either.  People are resistant to it and I don't want them to be uncomfortable while they're looking around.  I have still gotten many clients to call me after an open house and many times they say it was because I was friendly and they didn't feel pressured. 

Thanks for the information everyone!

This was a great blog! It's the truth , if your going to hold an open house, the seller expects you to sell their home first. Then if the opportunity arises to prospect for future clients last. I have not held an open house yet, but I know if it were my own house, I would want my agent to sell my home first and sell themselves last.