Open House Signs On Sunday In Wallingford Are Quite Popular

In an age of virtual tours, with the capability of displaying up t0 25 pictures via the MLS, does it still make sense to have an Open House? Do potential buyers still utilize the traditional Sunday Open House to check out available inventory?

It’s all about getting the house for sale in front of as many eyes as possible. An Open House is still a viable method to increase the foot traffic through a home. Open Houses also generate additional online exposure via such methods as  Facebook postings, web site blogs, You Tube videos, Open House web sites, broker web sites, etc. All of these digital marketing tools serve to expose a house that is holding a Open House to an infinite audience, and I think there is very little downside to that strategy. And who knows, you might even get some good old exposure in the Sunday Real Estate section, if that means anything to anyone.

According to NAR’s 2011 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 45 percent of all buyers used open houses as a source in their home search process. This figure suggests the value of Open Houses even in the Internet era. In addition, buyers in the Northeast region are significantly more likely to use Open Houses. Women are more likely to use Open Houses than men, as are foreign born buyers, or whose primary language is not English. Older buyers rely more on open houses than younger buyers, and buyers with higher incomes are also more likely to visit Open Houses.

An Open House provides sellers an opportunity to let many people view their property at one time. This means getting it show ready once, rather than multiple times for multiple showings. Also, homeowners should keep in mind, while the Open House might not yield an offer, it will provoke discussion. As real estate seems to be one of everyone’s favorite topics, those who attend an Open House will tell someone else about how they spent their Sunday afternoon and the houses they visited.

Open Houses also give the listing agent another avenue of feedback for the seller. And seller’s quickly learn the wisdom of reacting to feedback from potential buyers.

Sellers often complain that the only people who visit an Open House are the neighbors. Well guess what, neighbors are one of your best allies in the battle to sell your house. As champions of your neighborhood, neighbors often check out Open House not only to see what you are up to, they also act as great advocates for the neighborhood, and may know someone who is looking to become their neighbor.

Yes it does happen on occasion, an visitor to an Open House actually becomes the new owner of the home. I have had this happen several times in the past few years. The bottom line is – can you afford not to take advantage of all possible means of exposing your home to a potential buyer?

I will see you on Sunday, from 1 to 3!

Wallingford Real Estate – Wallingford, PA 19086