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Relify.com------Should Seller's be at Open House's??

Over the past few months I have been to a couple of open houses and Brokers opens when the seller was there. I do not know how you feel but I do not enjoy being in the house with them. When I go to an open I like to look around and get a feel of the house and discuss my thoughts and opinion with the agent. When the seller is there I do not feel free to express myself. I feel like the owner is watching me and looking for the feedback on their house, which is difficult to do. I wonder if the remarks I make will be taken to heart as many sellers are emotional about the sale of their house and the condition that it is in. What are your thoughts, does it bother you if the seller is at an open??? Does it bother your clients (as buyers tend to want to envision themselves in the house and not the previous owners)???

Stuart Berman

Co-founder

http://www.relify.com/

Posted by Stuart Berman on 03/31/2008 09:13 PM

Comments (8)

8 Comments on Relify.com------Should Seller's be at Open House's??

MAR

2008

I do not like sellers to be there during open houses or showings. I have had buyers comment on this and I think it makes the buyer feel pressured

Stuart,

I do not want to show a home with the seller there. It makes me uncomfortable as well as the buyers. There are unusual circumstances that make it OK, such as health. But, if they can walk.....I tell them to take a hike.

Hey Stuart -- sometimes the sellers are there, and it makes us all uncomfortable. If you have clients with you, they whisk out of that house. The buyer needs to visualize their furniture in that house. They may want to ask you questions......I went in one last week and the seller cornered me, and of course, you cannot advise them -- it was difficult to get away!

No...No...and Never! Your assumptions and feelings are right! For the same reasons you feel uncomfortable so does everyone else...the seller wants to participate and they want to be helpful but that's why they hire us!

If they want to participate...that's call FSBO!

I agree with all the above comments and will add this, 6 yrs ago I was selling my own home (used a Realtor/ friend in my office as Listing Agent and not myself). Well one day a "surprise showing" happened (the co-broke agent was in my driveway with some buyers), I said sure come one in the house was being kept very clean. I did not intend on leaving though, since my youngest son was napping, so I stayed out of site etc.. Well the Buyers tore apart my house and their Agent agreed with all their remarks, needless to say I was offended.

The moral here is that, if your Sellers want to hang around the Open House or stay for showings, they will need to be prepared to hear some nasty things being said, even a thick skinned Realtor like me can get offended!

The buyer needs to be able to express themselves on the house in order to "talk through" the process and what they do or don't like. If the owner is there, the buyer doesn't want to criticize for fear of hurting the owner's feelings. Also they won't say how much they LOVE it for fear of tipping their hands before negotiating. If buyer's are able to talk about what they don't like out loud, sometimes as a Realtor you may have a suggestion that could calm their fears or offer a solution/fix.

Seller should not be there ! I know, I have had some that insist and after I past the "newbie" stage == I let them know right at the listing appointment, what is expected and how it will go. Even if I take clients in open houses - we always walk out sooner than I would have liked to --- they always follow you around or try to "sell" you the home and 99% of the time -- they loose their potential buyer -- the buyers can't stand being watched and not being able to respond or comment between each other.

When I see that now, I see myself as a "newbie" and kind of have a bit of compasion for the agent... they will learn when the seller's chase away most of their potential.

I wholeheartedly agree: for the most part, it's intimidating and buyers want to leave as soon as they can. I have had a couple of sales, though, where the buyers met the sellers during a showing and felt they had so much in common that the house must just be right for them as well.

At the moment, however, i'm dealing with a case that is almost worse: the listing agent is the owner/seller, and the place--beautiful but hopelessly overpriced--can only be shown by appointment with HER--no lockbox. She has listed and sold dozens of houses in that particular part of town, but with her own home, she behaves more or less like a FSBO. Really amazes me -- when it comes to the emotional stuff, we're no different! And come to think of it, i have encountered FSBOs who where a lot more sophisticated and took the dog for a walk when i arrived with my clients.

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