When it comes to open houses in the real estate world this one sales tactic might be more about the hype than about the results. Some real estate agents in Florida play up the benefits for more than is necessary, considering how many drawbacks there are to the process. The fact is, that open houses are rarely conducted to sell a home. The facts about open houses should discourage anyone from bothering with the process. Real estate open houses can be great prospecting activities for realtors, but do open houses sell homes?
Continue to read to find out the 8 drawbacks of an open house in Florida.
1. Issues with Security
A big drawback of an open house is the potential for theft. Strangers who have access to your house off the street wandering around your home carry some obvious security risks. The majority of visitors will likely be there to view your home and learn more about it, some might be there for nefarious reasons. During an open house, anyone can come in—and the worst are people looking for access points, security weaknesses, and valuables. This is something most real estate agents who tout open houses never want to discuss. The delay in showings creates pent-up demand for the home and the chance for multiple offers.
2. Risk of Theft
This ties directly into security issues, but it does deserve its own section. During open houses, there have been cases of people breaking into the house for sale and stealing things. Sometimes they do it in occupied homes and sometimes they do it in homes that people are still living in. During an open house, the temptation might be too much, as they can walk into the home, see what they want to take, and how they can get in and then they can later burglarize the place. An open house is an open invitation for theft to be more probable.
3. Unqualified Prospects
There is a sign in the front yard that reads open house, many people have at least considered stopping in to check it out. There is rarely anything wrong with doing so, after all, how often do you get the chance to see how other people live and decorate? The problem arises when people come into your open house or do the same thing. That is, just stopping in to check things out without the intention of buying.
4. Neighbors are Noisy
House can be a beacon to neighbors. Curious about your home. They might be great neighbors or not so great to live by, and you might not want them wandering around your house. Unfortunately, when it comes to an open house, there is no real way to stop them. Once you open your house, almost anyone can walk through the doors, expect the busy bees, stopping by your home to discuss it with all the rest of the neighbors who failed to show up.
5. No One-on-One Attention
You might have a fantastic realtor, who is motivated to sell your home, but they are the only ones who can communicate with one set of buyers at a time, meaning in the long run there will be a lot of missed opportunities. This might look like good people, prospective buyers who never even get to speak to your real estate agent, there is no way for an open house visit to compare to an actual home viewing with your agent. Many will come by and visit are probably going to want to return at a later date to look at things if they are serious buyers.
6. Competition Amongst Sellers
Others selling their homes are likely to stop by and see what you were doing with yours. There's only makes sense especially if they're in a similar neighborhood with a similar home to sell. These visitors will do no good as they will simply see what you are doing and take what works for them. If they look over your home and think it looks good, they might be dropping the price of their home to be more competitive. Most sellers who are competing against you won't schedule a showing to do the same snooping they do at an open house.
7. Ulterior Motives Amongst Agents
Some agents are very excited to do an open house and are firmly convinced it is a valid sales method. However, there are a lot of agents that see open houses to meet other clients. All of those unwanted visitors are potential clients for the agent. Your neighbors might want to sell later so the open house is a good place to build rapport with these people. The agent will be meeting people who might not be qualified to purchase your home, but they are buyers nonetheless. The agent holding the open house at your place knows this. It doesn't affect you in the long run, plenty of agents know that open houses are a good method to look busy while seeking out future clients and work.
8. Doesn't Always Result in Sales
This is probably the biggest reason to be wary of an agent that practices open house as a sales method. The fact is, some homes are rarely sold as a result of an open house. This means that if you do agree to an open house, it might be more of a waste of your time, than beneficial to the sale of your home.
The Bottom Line
After reading all the drawbacks of an open house you are hopefully questioning the validity of why they are so important. The fact of the matter is, that they're not necessary to sell at home and can be deemed an archaic means of marketing a property. It is a symbol you could get lucky and sell your home at an open house, though, you could also be setting yourself up for disappointment. From a seller's standpoint, there is only one positive that an open house can provide, and that is the ability to set a certain time on a particular day when people are allowed to come and look. You might be wondering how this is beneficial. Just some sellers who work out of the home and have a hard time vacating the property during the week, by setting up a day or time in advance, buyers might choose just to come by on the day of the scheduled open house. Explore the best of the Forgotten Coast of Florida today.
