How many homes should we see in a day?

The one other client/circumstance when I will show more than 10 is to an investor looking for THE next one to re-hab.  He can look very quickly and it's not the same as working with other clients.

If you have the ability to do research ahead of time, you can greatly whittle down the prospects so that you only have to view a handful of homes. 

As someone who had done the 15-homes-in-one-day gauntlet (it was probably more like 10, but it felt like a million) because I was #1 under your yes scenario, I love the idea of the agent helping you whittle it down to "let's prioritize these in order of interest." My agent didn't do that (I've learned so much since then) and I was completely, utterly fried at the end of the day - and didn't find "the one" either. That happened on the next trip out, after she had learned what I liked and found another home that was the winner. 

Jared, I totally agree with your approach whenever possible. We are often dealing with out of town buyers and have to see a lot of homes over a period of a couple of days (scenario #1).  It comes with the territory.

It depends on the client and some are maxed out after three.You can tell when their eyes glaze over.

Jared, I agree with your process for the majority of buyers. There are some that can't handle more than 5 in a day even when they're out of towners. They just lose focus. That's the exception though. Narrowing down the top 5-6 is really helping your buyers and making the most of your time and theirs. That's why you're the agent to contact in Fort Wayne!

Hi Amnda and Jared. After about 4 homes, they all seem to run together and they forget which one had what features.  It all depends, as I have tried to show homes where they decided against them without even pulling in the driveway. If that happens, then you can see more, you just don't show more. If that makes sense. 

Jared & Amanda, thanks for the thought provoking post on showing homes.

You have a good system for determining when and why you would show 15 homes in a day.

I like to facilitate their on line shopping with homes I send them that meet their criteria.

This generally, helps them sort out what they don't like. 

Every situation is different.

Seeing that many homes in one day is a lot. They'll all start to run together and they'll forget which ones actually fit their criteria. Weed out the unnecessary first! 

Great post. It does vary on the situation and buyer. Some only want to see homes that has all their criteria and others want to see all the homes that is out there. That is why a buyer's consultation is so important. If we are able to communicate to our buyers that it is our job to preview the homes that are on the market, the number of homes shown can be diminished. But there has to be the mutual trust between the buyer and agent.

My rule of thumb is no more than 6 in a day. After 5, most people don't have a clue what they've seen. I certainly understand your "yes" categories, but try to really narrow it down for everyone's sake. Good post.

Amanda and Jared

A lot depends on how much information that our customers can handle and that varies from customer to customers.

Good luck and success.

Lou Ludwig

I agree with debbie that it depends on the client....when I was looking for a home, I would have gone all day and all night.  I wanted to look until I found one.  I think we saw 10 or 12 the first day and none of them was "the one" or even close, so I hated to stop.  My agent was a very good friend so we made the best of....lots of laughs!  Another agent probably would have hated my guts, LOL!

Amanda & Jared, Great post. I'll show the most homes the first time I take people out then only a few after. I will also have buyers go out and check out neighborhoods themselves. A lot of people like to drive around at their leisure and check out neighborhoods and oftentimes they rule some out for one reason or another.

Good rule to follow Jared! Hey I love the stuff you post on Face Book it really brightens my day!

You're right Jared, under normal circulstances fiften homes in one day is to overwhelming.

I'm with you. I thank them for all the potentials and then say, if you can, which 4-5 really grab you the most?  There is a tipping point where they can't decided. They end up "liking" too many! 

A&J~I try to go through a wishlist with folks beforehand. Sometimes they have NO IDEA. Sometimes, they've done a ton of research online looking for a lake, find Fishhawk Lake, and it's like a big light goes off, and they call. They know that they want to be on a lake and they have to just come out and SEE IT. I usually take 2 hours as I want to explain the lifestyle--more than just homes. Often, I see that they go a completely different direction than they intended. 

I get those who "have a dream". I don't fault them for that, as I was the same way. So, they may not be pre-approved, but we get the ball rolling and that will then give me the chance to send them to my most favorite loan person, EVER, Shawn Baeschlin with NW Mortgage Group. 

Most of the time, I don't think it's a waste of time--bolstering someone's dream is half the fun!