Showing Your Home

By Matt Unangst, 23 Jan 15:54

• Hold an open house
• Accept having a lock box
• More likely to sell house if not home when buyers come

Nearly everyone fears having an open house. Having tons of strangers marching through your house inspecting everything can be a very uncomfortable experience. Nevertheless, real estate agents nearly unanimously recommend that their clients have open houses. Although sales rarely result directly from open houses, they are an excellent way to create buzz about your house that can lead to an offer being made.
Agents will often hold two open houses for their new listings. One of these usually occurs mid-week and is primarily for other real estate agents. The agents who come to this house can then direct buyers whom they are working with to your house. The second open house is a general open house, which usually happens on a Sunday afternoon and is open to the public. Agents will often advertise these in the newspaper. They work as both a marketing tool for your house and a marketing tool for the agent to get new clients.
Many agents also like to have a “neighborhood” open house on the Saturday before the general open house. These are more informal, less intense open houses than the general ones. They get your neighbors to come through on Saturday, satisfying their curiosity and keeping them out of the way of more the more serious buyers who will come on Sunday.
A Seattle agent admits that open houses rarely result in sales, but still strongly recommends holding general open houses, saying, “If I had a client who didn't want an open house or a lock box I would question how motivated that client was. I also sometimes get clients who don't want buyers coming through at certain times of the day, or certain days of the week. But sellers need to be very flexible. The first thing I try to get across when working with a seller is that once the home goes on the market it's not your home anymore. It's a house that's for sale."
LOCK BOX CULTURE
A lock box is a small, locked box on the front of your home which contains a key to your house. The box can be opened by real estate agents who belong to the local MLS so that they can show your home to buyers working with them. Agents will bring their clients through at times that are convenient for them, usually when you are not at home (Most local MLS organizations prohibit agents from bringing clients through at certain hours, usually early morning and late night. Some lock boxes are programmed not to open during these hours).
Lots of sellers feel uncomfortable having a lock box at their home, but a lock box is a near necessity when trying to sell. Making your home more accessible to potential buyers makes them far more likely to visit it. If an agent has a list of potential homes that fit the buyers’ criteria, the agent will avoid the house without a lock box because it is more of a problem to arrange a viewing.
Without a lock box, you will have to arrange your own schedule to be at home when the prospective buyers come by. Not only is this a hassle, but you are also less likely to sell your house if you are hanging around the potential buyers while they look at things. They will not spend as much time inspecting the details of the house and making sure that they like everything about it. If you are at home when they come by, go into the garage or yard and do something to keep busy. Never follow them around the house and try to point out things you think are interesting.

KEYWORDS: homes for sale, houses for sale, open house, lock box, mls, general open house, broker’s open, neighborhood open house

SEE ALSO: Do Open Houses Work, How to Pre-Market Your Home

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