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How to Have a Successful Open House

It is important that sellers be adequately prepared for an Open House. Your sales representative will discuss with you the sales techniques they and their brokerage intend to use in the marketing of your property. As a seller/client, there are also requirements that must be performed by you in conjunction with your sales representative's marketing tools.

The property should be in tip top condition in order to create a good first impression.

The outside of the house is as important as the inside, the lawn should be cut and trimmed, and all other necessary steps taken to show the property in its best light.

Lights should be turned on and blinds, drapes etc. opened to let in as much light as possible.

Please make sure the rooms are as fresh as possible.

If your sales representative suggests that you leave the premises during the open house, please understand that the request is made on behalf of the consumer to make them feel as relaxed as possible.

Because not all consumers are pet lovers if possible, please take the family pet with you, or make arrangements to have the pet visit a neighbour, or at least be out of sight (see below).

It is recommended that just prior to the time of the open house make a quick tour with your sales representative through the house to ensure that all valuables are safe and that everything is in order. When the open house is completed, another quick tour with the sales representative through the house will ensure that everything is in place.

Please remember that your sales representative has as part of their training, held open houses and has the tools and techniques to best show the features of your home.

How to have a secure Open House

Unfortunately there is no way to control who visits an open house (it is, after all, an open house) and there have been thefts from Open Houses reported in our area as in every part of the country. However, there are some precautions that you, as a seller, can take before opening your home to the public that will minimize your exposure to theft or damage.

Before the open house of your home, please place all personal property and valuables - such as jewelry, knick-knacks and fragile decorative items - well out of sight. In addition, be careful to not leave money in plain view during the open house.

Just before the open house begins, make a quick tour with your sales representative through the house to ensure that all valuables are safe and that everything is in order.

When the open house is completed, another quick tour with the sales representative through the house will ensure that everything is in place. Make sure to include in your inspection windows and other points of entry. Some enterprising burglars have been known to leave a basement window propped open for ease of entry later.

Pets and Open Houses

Fido may be the light of your life and Fluffy the best mouser on the block, but remember, when you are having an open house, that not all people are pet lovers.

Each house has its own smell, and research indicates that the way a house smells is a far more important factor in determining which home a person chooses to buy than one would have imagined! With that in mind, please make sure the rooms of your house are as fresh as possible. That homey eau-de-cat-or-dog smell may be virtually undetectable to you . . . but chances are it is very detectable to someone who does not have a pet.

The same goes for those telltale signs of pet-occupancy — rolling tumbleweeds of collie fur or masticated pet toys or that dog food-encrusted dish on the kitchen floor, for example. These traces of Fluffy and Fido may not seem like dirt or clutter to you; they may seem otherwise to the non-pet lover.

Finally, if you can, take the family pet with you when you make your getaway or make arrangements to have the pet visit a neighbour or relative. Animals are territorial. The most serene pet may react in an unexpected way to strangers invading its territory . . . and your sales representative is better employed telling consumers about your home than he or she is rescuing that buyer from Fido or Fluffy.

And remember, out of sight does not necessarily mean out of earshot. If you can avoid locking up a vocal pet, do. Few things are more distracting or disheartening to prospective buyers than the sound of a frantically yelping or whining dog coming from a locked room or a dog clawing desperately with its last ounce of strength at a closed door.
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This information is provided by the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS®.
The information herein is believed to be accurate and timely, but no warranty as such is expressed or implied.