Open House - The Right Way | UniqueArticleDirectory.com

Open House - The Right Way

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by Connie Sanders

If you have your home listed with a real estate agent you will probably want to hold several open houses so people can view your home. You only get one shot at each potential buyer that looks at your home so you certainly want to do it right.

The best time to have an open house is Saturday and/or Sunday from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Make sure you have advertised the open house in all the local papers and that you have plenty of open house signs and flags set up through out the neighborhood. You may need permission for the placement of some of your signs so do your homework before the day of the event. It’s a sad thing to go to the bother of an open house and have no one show up. Sign placement is very important.

Of course by this time you have already put new paint where it was needed, you’ve cleaned thoroughly and removed all the clutter form your home, garage, and yard. On the day of your open house these additional small details can really make a difference: Turn on lights in all rooms and open blinds to let in as much light as possible. Have soft background music playing. Light the fireplace if you have one. Park the cars away from your house and out of the garage. Water the lawn front and back just prior to the open house starting. Keep pets secure and out of sight. Bake a batch of cookies during an open house or put a drop of vanilla on the oven rack and turn on the oven to 350 degree.

Put a guest register set out in the entry and have every potential buyer and/or warm body that comes through the door fill it out. Including the nosey neighbors. You need this information. It is a good idea to call each one later to get feed back, inquire about their intentions, or to call them back in the future when you have lowered your price. Just kidding. However, that is not a bad idea if you do change the terms.

Immediately after your guests/neighbors sign the register you should at that time give them the flyers for your home. This is very important. You must have two flyers. One quality flyer about your home and it should have a few pictures taken after you cleaned it up and before the kids got home. The other flyer should contain financing options. You can actually have both on one sheet if you can figuar out how to put them in the copy machine so the top is the top on both sides. You must have both and here is why.

Put an extra effort in your home flyer. When people shop for a home by viewing open houses on a Saturday or by traveling with a real estate agent, after the third home the details get all decom-boober-rated. They can’t remember which home had what. I swear to you it is a fact. So, make a good home flyer and have pictures of both the inside and outside.

Your Financing flyer is equally important. Folks wanting to buy a home are mainly interested in two things; how much their payments will be, and how much cash they need to put down. If you are a FSBO you probably don’t have a clue and if you have a real estate agent I guarantee they don’t know squat about financing. You can get free help from a mortgage broker. Most Brokers have free FSBO programs and will actually create both flyers for you.

There is just one more minor, small issue you should consider. It doesn’t happen everyday but it does happen. Be aware of thieves and crazy people. Keep your valuables put away and keep them out of sight. Even better, keep them at a friend or family member’s home. I know people that even take down pictures of their children. In addition to your neighbors, … you are inviting strangers into your home. Be alert and cautious.

Holding an open house can be can be a pain in the toosh but it can also be very productive so roll up your sleeves and just do it, but do it right, preferably the first time. Enjoy.

About the Author:

Connie Sanders understands that if you are selling your home yourself even little things can be a challenge. That is why she owns a For Sale By Owner web site that is free for the seller. Connie also offers free consultation so contact her on the site. http://www.fsbobasics.com Click here to get your own unique version of this article with free reprint rights.