Now I know what you are thinking. Open houses don’t sell houses. They are strictly a lead generation tool. Open houses are used to give the seller a warm fuzzy that you are doing your best to sell his home.
But what if you can utilize the open house to drive multiple offers. Statistics will tell you that 99% of houses don’t sell during an open house. And they are correct if you are doing a traditional open house where you sit in the home for 4-5 hours on a Saturday or Sunday praying someone will drop by.
Here is how you can create a unique marketing idea utilizing an old realtor tactic. Open houses work if you create a sense of urgency. Remember buyers will buy on emotion. You want to create a big F.O.M.O. Fear Of Missing Out.
When I list a property I will not allow any agent showings until after the open house. Nor will I accept any offers. This creates curiosity in buyers. On the day I choose to have the open house I widely publicize the event via social media. Show only a few pictures in the MLS until after the open house.
When you start your social media publicity show pictures that are not in MLS. The open house is only for 1 hour 2 hours max. Everyone that attends must sign a registration form prior to entering the home.
It is best to have a greeter perform this. During the open house create a sense of urgency for yourself. Be cordial but also be scurrying around like you have 10 buyers right now. Only accept offers after the open house.
For example, if your open house is at 2 pm on Sunday it ends at 3 pm. You will start accepting offers at 3:30 pm. Let it be known that your seller will not decide on any offer until Monday evening at 5 pm.
If your market is like mine. You will find buyers have lost the opportunity to purchase several homes and are eager to buy now. By creating a sense of urgency and controlling the open house you will not spend all day in an empty house.
Remember you need great signage and a lot of social media coverage. Banner Flags, great direction signs, and close the door at the time you post. do not hang around waiting for stragglers.
I hope you can see the difference in this method. However, it doesn’t work if you don’t have any listings. Keep reading and let’s get you some listings to try this new way of hosting an open house.