Open houses are a routine part of selling a home. They're a great way to announce your home being on the market and generating leads.
Even if you don't find a buyer for your home right away, you can use open houses to gather feedback about your property and learn more about what buyers in the area are looking for. That said, the best-case scenario is that an open house helps you get an offer immediately. That can be done as long as you take a few important steps to make an appealing pitch to visitors.
Here are some things you can do to generate offers from an open house.
Clean the Place, Clear the Clutter
Making a good first impression is essential when putting on an open house. You want your visitors to envision themselves living on the property, so it's important to clear clutter with the goal of depersonalizing the space as much as possible.
Do a complete clean-up of your house a day before the open house. Pay attention to all the different home components to make sure they all look presentable and are in functioning condition. Open out the windows and let in as much natural light as possible since that's a surefire way to create a cheery atmosphere and make the house appear larger.
Don't forget about the exteriors during the cleanup. If you have a lawn, make sure you cut the grass and trim the hedges. You could consider power-washing the walkways or driveways to add to the appeal of the exterior.
Stage the Home
Another step you can take to make your house seem welcoming to buyers is to stage it well. Buyers will judge an empty house on numbers like the square footage. By choosing the right furniture and accessories for each room, you help visitors understand how they can put the space to good use.
The important thing to remember is that you will be hosting people with all kinds of different tastes in design and decoration. So keep things understated while staging your home. Choose neutral colors and elements that make it clear what the main purpose of each room is.
If you're not confident in your own staging skills, you can hire a professional to do it for you.
Consider Investing in Repairs and Renovations
One thing you don't want is to declutter your home and stage it only for visitors to notice cracked steps or a shattered window pane. To prevent that from happening, make requisite repairs and a few improvements before opening your home to potential buyers.
There are a few fixes that all home sellers should consider. One of the first things someone walking through the door will notice is the amount of light in the room. If your home doesn't get enough natural light, install new bulbs and lighting fixtures to brighten the place up. Also repair any key functional home components that may not be in working condition such as the heating and roofing systems.
Stick to a budget when deciding what repairs and renovations to invest in. The price of your home will not increase with the money you spend on these improvements, so choose the most high-impact ones.
Get High-Quality Photographs of Your Home
Getting your home ready for an open house is only part of the challenge. The other part of it is to attract a large pool of potential buyers to come look at the property. One way to do that is by getting high-quality photographs of your home.
The best way to go about getting good pictures of your property is by hiring a professional photographer. If you're new to the area, your real estate agent should be able to recommend a real estate photographer who can capture images of the house. Most photographers will offer standard packages that cover getting photographs of the interior and exterior of the house.
The only guidance you may need to provide a photographer is in identifying which aspects of the home to highlight in pictures. That will depend on which the most impressive aspects of your property are and what buyers in the area are looking for. This is another area where a local real estate agent will guide you.
Market Your Open House
Once you have flattering images of your house, you're ready to market the open house. You can use both online and offline methods to get the amount of footfall you desire.
Signage still does a great job of attracting people to open houses. The sign on your front lawn, you can also put up signs at the major thoroughfares around your property. Include directional signs and contact information so people who encounter the signs can find your home.
Buyers are turning to the Internet to search for houses are for sale. You can use social media channels like Facebook and Instagram to target local buyers. Also list your home on sites Zillow and Realtor.com to find motivated buyers.
Engage Visitors in Conversation
Getting people coming through the door is important, but what will make or break your open house is your ability to build a rapport with potential buyers.
Greeting each visitor and having a cheery demeanor is a good start. You can spark conversation to find out what people are looking for in a house. You can use that information to highlight aspects of your home that may be attractive to each buyer. Any feedback you receive can help you improve the way you present your home.
Prepare yourself with the data you need to back up the asking price of your home during an open house. It helps to know how the market is doing and what the prices of homes in your neighborhood are. Getting a comparative market analysis done beforehand can help you make a strong case to visitors.
Provide All Necessary Information
Seeing a house gives potential buyers only a part of the information they require to make the purchase. They also require things like home inspection reports, appraisals, and financing options to proceed with the transaction.
You can make your open house more productive by providing all the paperwork that visitors may need to judge your property. By making all the requisite documents available to buyers at the open house, you expedite selling your home.
Along with the documents, you can also hand out flyers with pictures of your home and its best features. This will help visitors recall the property when they're choosing between all the houses they have seen.
Making your property stand out among all the available homes in an area can be a challenge in most markets. The best way to go about creating a compelling open house experience is by working with a real estate agent.
Clever Partner Agents come from the best brokerages in the country and have many years of experience assisting sellers. They help sellers craft strong listings and market their home in a way that appeals to local buyers.
Fill out the form on this page to connect with a Partner Agent who can help you organize an effective open house and sell your house for top dollar.