In order to maintain your reputation as a stellar real estate agent, there are a few best practices to abide by when hosting open houses. You want people to associate your name with a positive experience, so we’ve highlighted a few tricks to make your open houses stand out.
Be engaged
People want to talk to you—the expert—about the property. Know your facts and be able to answer questions about the neighborhood and about the specs of the house. Research these subjects ahead of time to give poised, confident answers.
Remember to put down your cell phone, step away from your computer and engage with every visitor. Don’t let potential buyers walk through the house with questions and without accompaniment.
Always be selling
Do not take any visitor for granted. Engage with each one—even the nosy neighbors. Even though this might not be the house for them, they are potentially in the market and will eventually sell their home, and they could go through you!
The personal touch of introducing yourself and having a quick conversation will definitely make you stand out in their mind. And don’t forget to get their contact information so that you can follow up. You can have them sign an informal visitor list on a clipboard or have them jot down their info on one of your business cards.
Entertain the senses
With the smell of baked goods in the air, a potential home buyer is going to subconsciously envision themselves baking in their new kitchen. Throw some break and bake cookies in the oven before you open the house. You can offer the baked cookies to the guests, but there’s no need to feed everyone—it’s more about the tantalizing scent!
Clean, clean, clean
Make sure the home is as clean as possible before bringing potential buyers into the space. Only use furniture that is absolutely necessary. In this case, less is more. And if there isn’t any usable furniture, it’s time to stage the home.
Additionally, remove any clutter associated with the owners. Potential new owners don’t want to see remnants of strangers in a home that they are envisioning themselves in. Remove anything personal, like family photos, or stash them out of sight.
We’ll say it again because it bears repeating: make sure to clean! This means sweeping, vacuuming, dusting, and no dirty dishes in the sink. This is especially important if the current owners have any pets.
When you properly prepare for an open house, you leave less room for distraction. You want every visitor to be swept up in what they see and allow their imagination to blossom as they envision themselves making this home their very own.
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