What to Expect from an Open House as a Seller

You de-clutter, sign your listing agreement, have wonderful pictures taken and put your house on the market. You ask your agent foran Open House right away and bake the brownies. Two hours lateryou are toldthe property was not sold and the brownies weren't eaten because no one showed! WHY?

The real estate market is ever changing. People are busy and free time is a coveted treasure. Having an un-scheduled Sunday afternoon to drive around and look at open houses is a luxury many of today's buyers do not have. More and more buyers are looking to the internet to preview and prioritize their time in viewing properties. With virtual tours, digitaltown records,and 360 degree images, buyers can get a tremendous amount of information on line.

Open housescanwork and should not be completely taken off the table, but sellers need to be realistic about what to expect.

1. First, make sure the home is priced well. If you're over priced, thenthe open house is just missing the target completely.
2. Consider having the open house targeted toa group of people. For instance maybe inviting all the neighbors so they can spread the word, or a book group you belong to. Many agents will choose to host a Broker Open House where agents from that geographic areaonly are invited to come preview your home usually duringa weekday whilethe seller is at work.These Broker Open Houses are a great way to get realistic feedback on your home from other professionals!
3. Nationally, less than 7% of homes are sold through open houses,as stated in arecent article from the American Homeowners Association.
4. Lastly, wait at least 2 weeks before hosting your open house. If your home is priced well, you'll have some activity as soon as it goes on the market. If it doesn't sell right off, then you should be able to glean some good information on why buyers aren't acting and can incorporate that information into your open house. Maybeproviding money back at closing for new carpet, or changing the layout of a living room to make it feel more open could impact a buyer's experience at your open house.

So keep baking the brownies but keep in mind these helpful notes when asking your agent for an open house! We're all here to work together to get your home sold!