The U.S. economy is growing, but the mortgage rates are growing alongside it. This means bad news for both the seller and the buyer. They have to race against time to close the deal with a decent mortgage rate.
If you’re having an open house, you have to take the proper steps to make it a success especially if you are saying to yourself I want to sell my house now! You never know if your agent might draft a contract with a client in the kitchen at the end of the day.
To increase the chances of a successful event that will lead to a sale, read our open house tips below. As always if you are looking for a cash offer from one of pueblo’s best house buyers contact us and we will give you an offer!
1. Make It Look Perfect
You know the drill—for your house to look presentable and livable, clean every nook and cranny. The bathroom and kitchen counters should be sparkling clean. Don’t forget to mow your lawn, clean garage, and clear the walkways as well.
You may also have to do some small home improvements. Some minor renovations are inexpensive, yet they can have a drastic effect on the looks of your house and the value of your home.
Updating the lighting and plumbing fixtures, refreshing the paint, replacing worn-down outlets, and so on can make your house look brand new.
2. Prepare the House for Visitors
After cleaning it, you should then stage it for buyers. Take out the car from the garage and if possible, get your dog to a daycare or a trusted friend.
Fill your house with light—go in every room, open the curtains or blinds, and turn on the lights. People like bright, cheerful, and airy spaces.
If it’s the summer season, make sure to turn on the air conditioning so the visitors will stay comfortable. Check out our blog post for more tips on selling your home during the summer.
3. Remove Personal Effects
When your visitors first step into the house, you want them to envision how it would be like living there. Your photos and personal things won’t help with that.
Take down and hide any photos of you, your family, and your pets before the visitors arrive. Hide your pet’s belongings, too, like their food and water dishes, litter box, and so on.
Is your child’s drawing still on the refrigerator? Take that down, as well.
Clothes hanging in the laundry room, dirty clothes in open hampers, and dirty dishes are a no-no. If you follow the tips above, though, then these shouldn’t be a problem.
4. Interact with Your Attendees
Wear your brightest smile as you greet each visitor into your house. Prepare a small spiel indicating what they’ll like in your house. If an opportunity arises, make sure you ask them what they think about it.
Not everyone will give you useful feedback, but some people will tell you outright their issues. This will help you fix those problems right away if you can.
If you’re the owner of the house, though, make sure you stay in the background while your agent handles the event. With you there, the visitors won’t be able to discuss the house as much as they want – like its flaws, what they don’t like about it – for consideration of your feelings.
5. Provide Some Food and Refreshments
You don’t need to hire a catering service to provide meals, a plate of cookies and some refreshments will do. Hiring a food truck to turn the open house into an event is an idea, though.
Handing out food and drinks will also provide you the opportunity to have a little small talk with the prospective buyers. It will also give them something to do while they stand around and discuss the house.
6. List Your House Online
There are many platforms you can put your house up in, like Zillow, Realtor, and Trulia. Zillow is the largest real estate platform, while Realtor.com comes in second.
You can also consider the largest social media platform – Facebook. Here, you can create events, list your house in the Marketplace, and invite your friends.
Your real estate agent should also have a website wherein they can post open houses. They will have the connections you don’t, so it’s a good idea to list your house there, as well.
7. Use an Open House Sign
Don’t ignore the usefulness of open house signs scattered around your neighborhood. It’s a good way to reach the demographics that don’t use the internet that much. Examples are retirees or people who aren’t active in looking for a house.
Make sure the signs are visible and they lead people to your house. Include the dates and hours you’ll be entertaining visitors. Use colorful balloons and such to make them eye-catching.
8. Use CRM to Keep Track of Your Visitors
CRM is a great way to reach out to the attendees after the open house. It can store the contact information of the visitors, allow you to email them, set reminders, and so on.
As you greet them, have the visitors sign in using your phone and tablet. The software will export the data straight into your CRM. This means you won’t have trouble reading your sign-in sheet anymore.
9. Prepare Some Handouts
Make sure your guests don’t leave empty-handed by providing brochures and flyers. These can serve as refreshers to your attendees.
A handout should contain some pictures of the house and some important details about it so they will remember it amongst other houses they’ve visited. It will also be helpful to them if you can include a few payment scenarios.
10. Don’t Forget Security
Anyone can walk into your home, which is why you should take a serious approach when it comes to security. Hide the valuables, lock some cabinets (the medicine cabinet, in particular), and limit the entry points. 
Other security measures include asking for the driver’s license upon sign-in. These are harder to fake than other IDs. You may also want to restrict bathroom usage (so you’ll never have a closed-door between you and a guest).
Talk to a Professional for Help
An open house is only a part of selling your house. You still have to entertain queries and offers, choose agents, have it appraised, and so on.
Why not skip this process altogether? Contact us for questions about our process and if you qualify.