Open Houses have long been a tool used by agents to get a home seen. On any given weekend, there are dozens of them in every community in America. How can your real estate agent position YOUR Open House differently to make it stand out from the rest? Remember, the goal of the Open House is to increase traffic and “thinking outside the box” can help drive traffic. Here are a few ideas to discuss with your agent:
1. Have a Garage Sale at the same time.
This serves two purposes. One, you can start getting rid of some of the clutter inside your home (which will help it show better and make packing to leave a little easier). And second, people will come to a Garage Sale. Whether it’s the neighbors or bargain-hunters, each of the garage sale attendees is a potential “sales person for the home”. They could be looking themselves or talking to someone else in the market. The more people who are aware of the home, the better.
2. Go with Off Peak Times.
Why not host an Open House during the week when people are “on their way home”? Especially if the home is convenient for commuters. Add a little wine & cheese as a transition to going home for dinner. Advertise on car windshields at the train station. Or why not an Open House at 9:00 in the morning? After people drop the kids at school, stop by our Open House for coffee & cake. Promote the Open House in the same community (where people know the schools, shopping, and such). Your target is people who want to move to the “better part of town”. Your agent can target those potential home buyers.
3. 203K Open Houses.
With so much of the available inventory in need of some improvement (from cosmetic love and care to major overhauls), why not promote the mortgage loan programs that can turn your house into the buyer’s Dream Home? Involve a loan officer in showing how the financing could work, but in a unique twist, have a home improvement contractor attend the Open House. They could have renderings, photos, and sample material choices to help show the potential of a home (as opposed to the imperfect reality). Your agent should have preferred vendors they work with to support this concept.
4. Live Virtual Open Houses?
With a webcam and a website, your agent could be walking people through a home and taking questions, while they are sitting in their own home. More of a “preview” before actually attending an Open House (or requesting a private showing), this strategy could weed out people who aren’t likely to be interested in a home.
In a time when there is so much available inventory, I think we need to get houses to stand out from the crowd. Looking for variations to a stale, overdone theme that many agents use (like Open Houses) can achieve that. Your agent should be on a search for a more targeted audience who may not even be thinking about moving. Your agent should try to appeal to their secret desires and show them how they can have them come to fruition. Additionally, your agent needs to find ways to attract as many people as they can because more traffic equals more word-of-mouth, and improved chances of getting your home sold.
source: https://www.keepingcurrentmatters.com/blog/