Did you know that open houses actually work to sell a home? Manyhome owners today that put their house on the market are against open houses and for a variety of reasons. I want to put to bed some of those myths right here and right now.
I’ve been told that sellers don’t believe open houses actually bring buyers to their home. This is false. I was showing homes last month to friends of mine that mentioned they wanted to see an open house that was down the street and it was the first day the home was on the market. They loved the house and we put it under contract within 48 hours. We may not have gone to see that property had the agent not held the open house.
I’ve been told that open houses don’t actually sell property and in fact are only used by real estate agents to find more buyer prospects or leads. This is false. While open houses do give the agents that hold the open houses opportunities to meet new potential buyers only about 10% are unrepresented buyers of the total amount of people that came to the open house.
I’ve been told that open houses are an inconvenience to the sellers. This is false. Whenmarketing a home you, as the seller, do not want to be present when buyers are coming to see the property. When a seller is home buyers walk through the property very quickly, they feel awkward with the seller being home and they find a reason why the property won’t work. Holding an open house is a showing for about four hours. Imagine showings were set for four hours straight on a Saturday for your home. As your agents we would advise you to see a movie, go have lunch or go to the park. The goal is to have you out of the house and let the buyers see the property undisturbed. An open house is no different.
I’ve been told that only neighbors come through open houses. This is false. I held open houses for properties we have listed in Commerce City over the weekend. It just so happens that out of the 40 people that came through only four people were neighbors. Everyone else was a prospective buyer and many came with either their agent or had their agent follow up with us about the properties.
The truth is open houses work. I’ve sold homes through open houses, Dan Polimino has sold homes through open houses, and Gary Lohrman has sold homes through open houses. Our job, as your agent, is to bring the largest pool of buyers to your doorstep in order to sell your home for the highest price possible and in the quickest amount of time. Open houses are one of the many tools we use to do just that.
Marc Bayes is a Broker Associate with the Colorado Dream House Team, Keller Williams Realty DTC. Contact Marc at 303-619-3052, marc@coloradodreamhouse.com,codreamhouse.com or coloradodreamhouse.com
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