Preparing for a Successful Open House

Make sure the date and time of the open house don’t conflict with a major holiday or sporting event.

Make sure the date and time of the open house don’t conflict with other events being held in the neighborhood on that day.

Plot a road map to the home from the nearest major streets and decide where you’ll place your flags and directional signs. Allow yourself time to put the flags and signs in place in advance of the open house starting time.

Familiarize yourself with other for-sale homes in the neighborhood, and be ready to answer questions about how the home you’re holding open compares with them.

Encourage the sellers to vacate the premises during the event, but keep you informed of their whereabouts in case an offer for the home materializes.

Ask sellers to arrange for pets to be away from home during the open house.

Showcase the home by opening the drapes or window blinds and setting out fresh or artificial flowers.

Encourage the sellers to call in a professional cleaning service the day before the event.

Advise sellers to put away any jewelry, valuables, or items with great sentimental value.

Practice your presentation of the home. Walk through the home and familiarize yourself with its features. Anticipate prospective buyers’ questions and objections, and be ready with your replies.

Arrive early. Allow yourself ample time to resolve any last-minute problems or glitches in your plans and get settled in the home before the first visitors arrive.

Contact a lender prior to the open house and ask him or her to be available to prequalify any buyers who may be interested in making an offer to purchase the home.

Plan to work with other salespeople holding open houses near yours. Refusing to cooperate with the competition won’t prevent prospective buyers from visiting those homes.

10 Tips for a Successful Open House

1. Don’t be a chatterbox. Greet your visitors, give them your card and a property brochure, and allow them peace and quiet while they tour the home.

2. Be honest about the home’s features and improvements. A seven-year-old roof isn’t "new," although the owner may describe it as such. Many owners think any improvement they paid for themselves is "new," even if it was made more than a decade ago.

3. Don’t drop vague hints about offers having been received for the home if that’s not the case. When the truth later comes out, the buyers may feel manipulated and back out of the whole transaction.

4. Make copies of presale home and termite inspection reports available to prospective buyers along with estimates of the costs for any needed repairs or fumigation.

5. If your state requires a disclosure form, have it completed ahead of time, and make copies available to prospective buyers.

6. Display photographs of popular neighborhood amenities (e.g., local parks and recreation center).7. Have comparable sales data available.

8. Give visitors property information sheets with important facts about the home and the community. Examples include a flyer highlighting the home’s features, summaries of room size, lot size, taxes, and assessments; and a map showing the location of schools, hospitals, public transportation, libraries, supermarkets and other services and retailers.

9. Ask visitors for immediate feedback about the home.

10. Use a guest book to collect visitors’ names, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses. Follow-up with a telephone call or e-mail after the event.