Keller Williams Empowered Realty
The first open house was held in 1910. Since then, real estate agents all over the world have continued to host them as a way to sell their listings and meet future buyers and sellers. According to the 2021 Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Sellers Report authored by the National Association of Realtors®, 53% of all home buyers sourced information about a property at an open house. Due to the low cost, hosting an open house can provide you with one of the highest returns on investment compared to all real estate lead generation. This playbook is designed to provide you with the model on how to run the most effective open house as well as walk you through the system step by step. Together we are about to create a very powerful open house event that will put you in a position to maximize your time and exposure for the listing you are holding open.
1. Hold an OPEN HOUSE
Even in an increasingly digital world, 41% of buyers reported using open houses as a source of information and 28% of buyers reported using open houses frequently to occasionally for information during their home search. Hold a broker open before your public open house to help limit the number of agents attending your public open house so you can focus your attention during the public open house on potential buyers while also getting the word out about your listing to agents who have clients actively looking to buy.
2. Staging your home WILL increase its value
Many people believe staging your home might not be useful but it can increase the value of your home by 10-12%. It works to actively minimize the negatives and accentuate the positives of a property to make the best impression. Start by decluttering and depersonalizing to remove any potential distractions. Make sure to use neutral colours and furniture. This will help potential buyers visualize their own furniture & life as well as motivate them to make a reasonable offer.
3. Price the home CORRECTLY
The #1 reason a property does not sell is because it is priced incorrectly. The right price will sell ANY home. The pricing pyramid explains why this happens:
When a property is listed at the current market value, it is more likely to appeal to around 60% of active buyers. In accord with the real estate pricing pyramid, listing the property 10% to 15% below market value expands the prospective buyer demographic to 75% to 90%, which is a good technique to create more visitors when your property is unique or your neighborhood has few prior competitors. In some cases, the property may be listed 10% to 15% above the market value however this is not always advisable as it limits the number of potential buyers to 10%. If an overpriced property appears in a buyer’s group of available houses, it means the buyer is looking to relocate in that budget range. If it isn’t openly rejected, the home will certainly slip to the end of the consumer’s selection of homes to view because it is costly.
4. DONT over-upgrade!
Quick fixes before selling always pay off. Mammoth makeovers, not so much. You probably won’t get your money back if you do a huge improvement project before you put your house on the market. Instead, do updates that will pay off and get you top dollar. Get a new fresh coat of paint on the walls. Clean the curtains or go buy some inexpensive new ones. Replace door handles, cabinet hardware, make sure closet doors are on track, fix leaky faucets and clean the grout.
5. Get the proper Listing Agent
Last but certainly not least, get a real estate agent to help you. A secret sale killer is hiring the wrong broker. Make sure you have a broker who is totally informed. Find a broker who has experience in the field & embraces technology – a tech-savvy one has many tools to get your house sold. In an increasingly digital world, sellers & buyers have a lot of information on hand, so find an agent that will be able to stand out from the crowd. They should be an expert in the neighborhood, as well as have fine-tuned negotiation skills that will retrieve the best value for your home.
