DO YOU DISCLOSE WHY YOU'RE HOLDING AN OPEN HOUSE?

I have had very interested buyers through open houses--I did not represent them but they did make offers on the property. I don't mind holding open houses--I like chatting with neighbos, getting paperwork done, meeting potential new clients, --just part of the job.

I do hold all my listings open.  No one knows the house better than the listing agent and no one can do a better job selling the house than the listing agent.  When it is not busy I use the time to catch up on my paperwork.

I believe that open houses do help all parties like many who said so, but there are a lot of realtors that will disagree with me, at the end of the day I give my clients the sellers the final word if to have one or not.

Currently, in the Los Angeles market, homes are going very quickly and in multiple offers.  It is often more convenient for sellers and the listing agent to have an open house rather than scheduling multiple showings daily.  

Hi Susan, I enjoyed stopping by a few open houses today, something I seldom do, but these were homes that I had looked at with my agent several months ago and wanted to talk to the listing agents in person to pick their brains on the sellers motivations and likelihood of negotiating a deal.

It was a surprisingly enlightening day, I glad that I went.

Hi Susan, on the one hand it may appear that the agents spoke more that they should have, yet on the other hand, I will be putting in offers on both properties this week, based mainly on the fact that they are now ready to get serious about making a deal.

One of the agents is also the owner of the property, and she may have revealed too much about how desperate she is to get out from under the property, and the other just hinted at the type of cash terms her client was looking for and seemed to be ok with my intention to offer 30% below asking price as long as we bring cash.

Finding out what the other party wants can sometimes take months or forever when we both have to speak through too many agents, it is nice to be able to cut out a few intermediaries.

Every property is unique as are many of the selling opportunities surrounding it. In Hawaii, Realtors especially Waikiki Real Estate Professionals often utilize the Open House to capture that emotional sell, but we also have investors who only see the Cap Rate and not the sunset.

I think of an Open House as an opportunity to meet and greet, but as you pointed out there are a lot of factors a seller should consider before deciding that an Open House is included in their marketing decisions. It's up to the licensed professional to outline the pro's and con's where safety and security should be paramount.

This is a great topic to debate as it brings to light the challenges and benefits of one of the many marketing tools at the hands of Real Estate Professionals.

Thanks for the post, peace. 

If you choose not to do open houses as part of your overall business plan or marketing plan that's fine. But to criticize those who do is not productive. Do signs sell houses? Does advertising sell houses? Do virtual tours sell houses? Do info boxes sell houses? Most houses sell through the MLS. There are pros and cons to everybody's marketing but to state agents should disclose that open houses are just to pick up buyers is wrong.

Open houses can be a productive use of an agent's time. Agents who attend may see the house is nicer than it appears in the MLS. People stopping by builders models may stop by the open house for the resale home in the same sub and decide to buy instead of waiting for a house to be built. Someone else's buyer may stop in. The possibilities are endless. But from my experience (21 years) when an agent doesn't want to hold open houses, use info boxes, use virtual tours, it's usually because they don't want to spend the time or money. And that's not wrong. It just means they probably have a "better" use of their time and/or money. But don't act like an agent is unethical because they choose to market differently than you.

Susan- that is true. My experience is valuable in my market. But the question of your post isn't "do you disclose why you're holding an open house in ON." No place in your post do you suggest that only in your market they don't work and are a form of picking up buyers in your market area specifically. I don't mean to be b****y, but reading too many posts lately that sound like my way or you are incompetent or unethical.

We do open houses often and they work very well if they are done well.  I saw your list of disclosures and have to say none of them apply so no disclosure necessary.   Neighbors always have family or friends they know who want to buy in the area, some have realtors and some do not, occassionally I get a buyer but my main reason to hold a house open (especially if the house is occupied) is to GET IT SOLD.  Maybe having the right intention is part of the reason they work for us as well.

Susan,

My reasons for holding open houses extend beyond appeasing a seller.

Just as one example, I sold 4 houses to a family I met at one open house.  (And I have 100's of them from open houses).

My profile:  have been in the business for 30 years full time, college educated in real estate, have a broker's license - definitely not  a newbie and definitely experienced, sell an average of 75 homes per year in a area with less than 100,000 people in the area.  Every market and every Realtor and every situation is different. 

One of my best agents won't hold an open house but there are plenty of things she will do for her customers and clients that are not things I excel at - so I think to each his/her own is the right answer here. 

Great post. 

Great post and discussion.

There are many good reasons to hold an open house, but not matter what subject, I find that all to often there is only one side of the scenario that is being explained (to the client).

If your intentions are good, being honest wont hurt...however, even if your intentions are good, but you don't disclose, then you loose credibility you will never get back.

This was honest and refreshing...

Very interesting to read all the different takes on this subject. Thanks for the article as it has been an enlightning discussion