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Freezing rain today ... but people still came to open house

By
Real Estate Agent with Alain Pinel BRE 01367196

It's raining, it's pouring...

For the second consecutive rainy Sunday, I held an open house for a cozy (okay, small!) bungalow. It was wet, windy and cold. Brrr!

Last Sunday, there was a steady flow of people, some of whom are just beginning to look into buying a home and want to "see what's there." I was hoping this Sunday, there would again be many folks who would come to the open house in spite of the rain.

Knowing that the day would be cold and wet, I brought a tea pot to heat beverages (cider, chocolate and International Coffee) for anyone who would want it.

And come, they did! Some of them even accepted the offer for hot cider and hot chocolate. And when they did, they lingered and asked questions.

Non-stop open house guests

What was surprising is the number of people who braved the nasty weather today to go to open houses.There was a couple who toted their baby (in a covered carrier, of course). Others had notebooks and printouts. We'd like to think that these folks are serious buyers.

Brisk activity in other open houses

Other folks from my office who held open houses today also said they were swamped by the non-stop stream of lookers.

Is this good news? YOU BETCHA!

 

Related posts:

What I did to get 70-80 groups to come to my last open house

10 Things to Do When Posting on Craigslist

Getting leads. Which works best? Open house or internet posts?

 

Comments (14)

Denise Gray
Realty World Alliance - Wichita, KS
Realtor SRES, Wichita Kansas Homes

I think the worse the weather the more people want to come out. Makes no sense to me but let rain.

Feb 22, 2009 12:41 PM
Pat Tasker
Shorewest Realtors - Germantown, WI
Your Milwaukee Metro Area Agent (WI)

You just never know....if it was really nice, people might want to get things done around the house and yard, and stay home from opens!  You just never know!

Feb 22, 2009 12:43 PM
Kathy Knight
Intracoastal Realty Corp - Wilmington, NC
BROKER, ABR, CRS, GRI, SFR, SRES

Good for you Pacita - at least you had someone....

Feb 22, 2009 12:52 PM
Angelia Garcia
Pure Realtors - Dallas, TX

You always have good luck with your Open Houses.  I wonder what it is about you or the homes you list?

Feb 22, 2009 12:54 PM
Mike Klijanowicz
Cummings & Co. Realtors - Perry Hall, MD
Associate Broker @ Cummings & Co. Realtors

There is A LOT of them out there.  Last weekend I had 7 people show up at one of my opens that I did. 

Feb 22, 2009 12:55 PM
Antonio M. Cardenas Broker Associate
RE eBroker Group - San Leandro, CA. - San Leandro, CA
"The Realtors In Motion"

Way to go Pacita, the hot chocolate and cider is a nice touch and I am sure appreciated. what I like about open houses in weather like this is that only the serious buyers venture out there. I hope you got some good contacts. C U tomorrow 4 Dinner!

Antonio

Feb 22, 2009 12:59 PM
Lori Churchill Cofer
Beasley Realty - Pullman, WA
Realtor - 509-330-0086 - Pullman, WA

Pacita,

You have got to be the "Queen of the Opens".....and I love all your tips....tea...nice touch!

Feb 22, 2009 02:38 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Denise --- from as early as I can remember, the rain hasn't dampened the spirits of those who are serious buyers. When I think back on the folks I've helped, we have sloshed through puddles and endured freezing rain to look at houses. But they didn't care.

Pat --- maybe when the weather is nice, they find other things to do.

Kathy --- we had quite a few. Probably 20 or so groups came through today.

Angelia --- could it be that I promote the heck out of my listings via craigslist, zillow, trulia?

Michael --- I'm a believer in open houses. 15% of my escrows last year was due to contacts I made thorugh open houses.

Antonio --- thanks. I did get a least one possible buyer to whom I have sent information on another property that may meet their needs. See you tomorrow!

Lori --- I remember that when I had a pot of cider on the stove, it emitted a fabulous aroma especially in the fall. Another good one is to have hazelnut coffee brewing. Smells heavenly!

 

 

Feb 22, 2009 03:18 PM
Mesa, Arizona Real Estate Mesa Arizona Realtor
Homes Arizona Real Estate LLC - Mesa, AZ
AzLadyInRed

Pacita, wow, I'm jealous - getting visitors to open houses. Typically, our open houses are not that successful, and here we are in wonderful 70-degree weather. ;-)

Pepper

Feb 23, 2009 02:24 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Teri --- real estate truly is local.

Just a few miles away are some cities that don't get the same kind of traffic we do. Alameda is not quite as expensive as San Francisco or Marin County who will consider the homes here "more affordable". But our neighbor cities consider Alameda as "expensive".

Wait until the rains stop ---- 4 more days. And then we'll be back to blue skies and 60-70 degree weather that we're more used to.

Feb 23, 2009 04:54 PM
Toula Rosebrock
Diane Turton, Realtors, Forked River, NJ - Lacey Township, NJ
Broker/Sales Associate, Realtor, Lacey Township,

ToulaRosebrock.comHi Pacita:

That's great news! 

It's been busy here in NJ as well.

Feb 23, 2009 11:00 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Toula, glad to hear it. If they're out in inclement weather, they're serious lookers.

Feb 24, 2009 03:15 AM
Kelsey Barklow
Hurd Realty - Johnson City, TN
423/948-9154

You are my Open House hero, Pacita. I bought the flags and am the only one in my city to use them. They always look impressive. Thanks for all the great tips.

Mar 01, 2009 08:02 AM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA
Glad to have helped. Always good to stand out from the crowd.
Mar 01, 2009 08:53 AM