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But This Other Agent Promised me a Four-Hour Open House

By
Real Estate Agent with Elizabeth Anne Weintraub, Broker DRE #00697006

open house benefitsSoon as a Sacramento listing hit the market, the seller freaked out. He started calling other agents in Sacramento. He asked for opinions; did he do the right thing? One agent promised she would stage his home for free, plus she promised to hold a four-hour open house.

Wow! Four hours!

When his own agent brought him a full-price offer from an excited first-time home buyer, the seller allegedly rejected the offer and accused the listing agent of trying to sell the house to flippers. He continued to canvas other agents and ask for their opinion. Not all sellers are stable.

If you call 15 agents, you'll get 15 different opinions. But that open house was a big deal to the seller. He knows, by George, that homes sell at open houses.

When a represented client calls this Sacramento real estate agent and asks for her opinion, I don't give it to them because it's against the Code of Ethics. It's against the Code of Ethics to interfere in another agent's listing. As a REALTOR® in Sacramento, I don't cross that line. I'll give advice to people who are unrepresented; I'll give advice to my own clients, but I don't advise some other agent's client. That's why they have an agent.

Read more in my professional business website today about Who Benefits From Sacramento Open Houses?

Chart: Elizabeth Weintraub

A study by the National Association of REALTORS® found that 45% of all buyers visited open houses to help them decide what kind of home to buy, but they didn't necessarily buy any of those homes.

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Elizabeth Weintraub is co-partner of Weintraub & Wallace Team of Top Producing Realtors, an author, home buying expert at The Balance, a Land Park resident, and a veteran real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown, Carmichael and East Sacramento, as well as tract homes in Elk Grove, Natomas, Roseville and Lincoln. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put our combined 80 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at RE/MAX Gold. DRE License # 00697006.

Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of RE/MAX Gold. Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice; it could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.

Comments(4)

Tammie White, Broker
Franklin Homes Realty LLC - Franklin, TN
Franklin TN Homes for Sale
I don't advise represented sellers either but if a seller wants to talk with me about representing him, then I tell him to contact me after his contract expires.
Apr 29, 2013 02:24 AM
Melissa Zavala
Broadpoint Properties - Escondido, CA
Broker, Escondido Real Estate, San Diego County

Very nice advice, and people often forget and meddle where they ought to best stay away. 

Apr 29, 2013 04:03 AM
Chris Ann Cleland
Long and Foster Real Estate - Gainesville, VA
Associate Broker, Bristow, VA

Open houses definitely benefit the agents holding them more than they benefit the seller.  The vast majority of buyers who are ready to make an offer are working with an agent and don't need to sneak in during an open house.  They will have their agetn scheduling showings for them.

Apr 29, 2013 10:00 AM
James Dray
Fathom Realty - Bentonville, AR

I've had owners who at the time called me and asked my opinion but to call a client represented by another agent not in this lifetime. 

Apr 29, 2013 07:09 PM