Is an Open House Always a Good Idea? Some Points to Consider

Real estate pro Matthew Share comes with a unique combination of an undergraduate degree and work experience in marketing and sales and a Master’s degree and work experience in computer information systems, all combined to help you sell or buy your next home. Contact Matthew today! 678-520-3113

Social media and the relative simplicity of do-it-yourself marketing have fueled the recently renewed debate over whether open houses are still necessary to sell a home. While a big part of your real estate agent’s job is promoting the sale of your home, many sellers increasingly supplement their efforts by posting their listing via social media, which often includes a professional-looking logo created by tools like a custom logo maker.

There’s a lot of downside to having an open house. You have to clean and arrange your house to an extent you’ve probably never had to before, and then you have to keep it that way. If you have pets, it’s necessary to hide them away or ask someone to watch them while you’re showing your house. It can be a very difficult way to live. After all, you can’t put your life on hold while you make a showplace out of your living environment.

There are other drawbacks, enough to make anyone question whether an open house is ever really worth the effort and the risk of allowing a stream of strangers to wander freely around your house and poke into every corner, no matter how private. Read on for more considerations from real estate expert Matthew Share.

Burglary

Open houses are advertised invitations for people who are bent on stealing, not viewing. Inviting strangers into your house is always an iffy prospect. Having people you don’t know wandering at will while you can’t keep a close eye on them is a recipe for theft. The Day points out that there have been many cases of burglary at open houses in the U.S. in recent years.

Some thieves will use an open house as an opportunity to get familiar with (or “case”) your home, identify how and where they could most easily enter your home, and decide what they want to take. A professional burglar will leave an open house knowing exactly how to break in without getting caught. Some people simply help themselves to small but valuable objects as they pretend to look through your house.

Prospects Without Prospects

You put so much time into preparing your home for an open house that you don’t want to focus on prospective buyers who aren’t qualified to buy, either because they haven’t gotten prequalified or because they simply cannot get a home loan. Lots of people just like to look around because they’re curious or because they’re looking for decorating ideas. When it comes to an open house, there’s really no way of weeding out the unqualified prospects who invariably show up.

Inquisitive Neighbors

Do you have neighbors you don’t get along with, or know someone nearby you really just don’t want in your house? An open house is an invitation for anyone to come on in. You can’t hire a bouncer to admit some people and turn others away like what happens at exclusive nightclubs. Curious neighbors want to see how you live and what kind of stuff you have in your home, but they’re certainly not there to discuss purchasing your home.

On the other hand, you may  well be friendly with your neighbors, and it is certainly true that the people on your street might know somebody in the market for a new home or even be interested in moving themselves. If you feel comfortable doing so, consider hosting a “neighbors-only open house” to at least spread the word your house is for sale.

If you are planning an open house, Zillow notes there are some things to do to get ready in addition to figuring out how you will deal with the problems mentioned above. If you live in an area that is still dealing with a serious outbreak of COVID-19, you may need to adhere to extra safety precautions.

There’s really no hard-and-fast rule when it comes to open houses. You may do as well or better with a well-targeted and well-presented online approach. Listing your house online, promoting it through your Facebook page, or setting up your own website are all valid and effective tactics.

Another Option

If you really want to host an open house, why not consider a virtual open house?  You will still have to stage your living space and keep your pets out of sight, of course. However, allowing people to see your home without physically stepping foot in it will go a long way towards eliminating the opportunities for stealing, time-wasting, and snooping.

Content Contributed by Andrea Needham of eldersday.org