The truth about open houses

The Truth About Open Houses

Provided by Jay Burnham, VP
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

On five Sundays last fall, Zouheir Farah and Maria Rodriguez rose early, scrubbed and vacuumed, put out fresh flowers and dutifully baked bread so their house would smell homey. Then they left for the afternoon while their real-estate agent held court. "We never questioned it," says Farah, who knows now that the investment of effort never stood much chance of paying off. Their four-bedroom colonial sold after several months to a buyer who had never attended an open house but was brought in by an agent.

As the housing market has slowed in recent years, a great many sellers have discovered a real-estate industry secret: Open houses rarely move houses. In a 1991 survey by the National Association of Realtors, just 3 percent of people who had bought existing homes found them through an open house. Last year, Rebecca Dodd, the Centreville, Va., agent sho represented Farah and Rodriguez, didn't sell a single home through an open house, although the 30 or so she held did bring her nine new customers. Says Kay Courtney, a real-estate agent in Grand Rapids, Mich.: "Open houses are real good for me. But as a method of selling homes, they're worthless."

Browsers, no buyers. When serious house hunters are out in force, that may be less true; an open house could bring in a buyer, and if it doesn't you might not notice. But in leaner times, open houses are at best likely to frustrate ("Last year, I got a lot of people saying they were looking to see how the homes were decorated," says Dodd) and, at worst, could hurt your chances of getting the asking price. A house held open frequently can start to look like a loser, making it a prime target for low-ball bidders.

Even under the best of circumstances, open houses should be used judiciously - as one part of a marketing plan that includes publicizing the home to other agents through "brokers' open houses" and the multiple listing service, and newspaper advertising. Unless your house is in a densely populated area, is easily accessible by car or on foot and is visible from the street, you may as well not bother holding open houses at all, says Jacelyn Stretton, a broker with Weichert Realtors in Chester, N.J. Instead, agents for out-of-the-way property owners might try invitation-only showings to homeowners in areas nearby where houses are less or more expensive, and who might thus be potential trade-up or trade-down buyers. Or your broker might direct walk-ins at other open houses your way. At each open house Stretton holds, she keeps a stash of materials on hand about other homes in her inventory at comparable prices.

Assuming the effort does seem worthwhile, you'll need an agent who knows how to work the crowd. The best way to find one is to attend some open houses. An agent who chats you up rather than discussing the home probably cares most about snaring new customers, says Carolyn Janik, author of "How to Sell Your Home in the '90s" (Penguin Books, $9.95). Someone who shows you around and has researched the neighborhood, local schools, public transportation and financing options, is far more apt to make a sale.

The right agent will welcome your input on how the open houses should be handled. During the summer months, Kay Courtney holds open houses on Monday evenings so as not to miss house hunters away for the weekend. A house near businesses and pedestrian traffic might benefit from a midday, mid-week showing. Dodd supplements newspaper announcements by mailing notices to residents of nearby neighborhoods where homes run about $50,000 more or less than the asking price. Though snagging a buyer this way is a long shot, some planning increases the odds.

JAY BURNHAM, VP
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
PREVIEWS International® Property Specialist
54 Dodge Street
Beverly, MA 01915
978.233.2828

Designations Earned: CRB, CRS, GRI, RECS, SRES