Does holding an Ocala open house have value? Imagine this scenario: Since you decided to sell your home, you have quickly become inundated with advice. To be sure, family, friends and neighbors all want to have their input. Your favorite aunt says, “make sure your Realtor holds an open house every weekend!” But the banker next door contradicts her and offers the opinion that an open house will only bring undesirables to the neighborhood. “They don’t sell homes anyway”, he protests. Who are you to believe?
I have made my living in real estate for over thirty years. Let me share what these years have taught me. But keep in mind that they have also caused me to form an opinion, and it is that opinion I am sharing, not an absolute truth.
What Benefits Does An Ocala Open House Deliver?
Everyone who promotes an open house does so on the assumption that it will introduce your home to more buyers. Therefore, they conclude, though it may not lead to a direct sale, the open house will indirectly create more demand for your home. As a result, they argue, your home will sell more quickly and at a higher price. However, do statistics bear these expectations out? Unfortunately, they do not.
In fact, studies show that while some sales do originate with contacts made at open houses, such sales are rare exceptions, not the rule. Of course, even when a motivated Ocala open house guest does buy a visited property, a simple question arises. Did this bestow any special benefit upon the seller? The most probable conclusion is that it did not. Here are the reasons:
(1) Even if motivated buyers had not visited the open house, they would have likely driven through the neighborhood and become aware that your home is on the market from the Realtor’s sign.
(2) They could have been informed that your home is listed by a friend in the neighborhood.
(3) As most potential buyers do, they were likely searching the internet for the home of their dreams and would have found your home that way.
(4) Of course, they were most likely represented by a Realtor who would have introduced them to your property in any event.
(5) If they were not yet working with a Realtor, they would likely have contacted yours from the lawn sign. He or she would then have offered representation and all the information they required.
(6) They, or someone they are close to, would likely have been reached by your agent’s mail or electronic marketing.
So Who Would An Ocala Open House Benefit?
In short, we live in the age of the internet and electronic marketing. Therefore, we find it highly likely your buyer would have discovered your home whether they attended your Ocala open house or not. So the most likely reason they may not have bought your home is that, but for the open house, another offer would have been presented to you before theirs. Therefore, the open house will have benefited them, while making no difference to you.
But Are There Any Problems Associated With Holding An Open House?
Now let’s examine disadvantages associated with holding an open house. But before we do, let me make it clear that the risks posed by each of these individually are very small. Therefore, we recommend that you weigh them as a group against the benefits offered by open houses:
(1) Visitors to an open house rarely bring Realtors to act as chaperones. Therefore, they are free to roam your home on their own. This poses a unique set of risks. You may face damage to your property, theft, personal injury claims, or even unwelcome visits by burglars.
(2) Most visitors to open houses are curious. Very few are actually contemplating buying a home. Additionally, of those who are motivated to buy, almost all will conclude that your home is not right for them. However, all will track dirt into your beautiful, carefully staged abode, necessitating a cleanup effort by you or a maid service you engage.
(3) Statistics suggest that open houses do not lead to quicker sales or higher sale prices.
So, Does Anyone Benefit From Staging An Open House?
Since the benefits to sellers are so marginal, we conclude that the disadvantages clearly outweigh them. But if neither seller nor buyer benefits, does anyone? While opportunities to do so are quite limited, I can definitively make the case that Realtors benefit most. Consider that few of the motivated buyers who visit open houses hire representation first. Therefore, each presents the Realtor conducting the open house with an opportunity to gain a new client.
As is our practice in blog posts, below we present three article that will educate you further as to the advantages and disadvantages offered by holding open houses. Enjoy reading:
Open House Pros and Cons: What You Need to Know
Open houses are a very debatable subject in the real estate world. For some sellers, the idea of an open house is a must, and for other sellers, it seems like a nightmare. There are also real estate agents who feel strongly for or against open houses, and some that are indifferent towards them. An […]. Read more…
Do Open Houses Work?
What Are Open Houses? Open houses are a marketing activity performed by a licensed real estate agent, usually on a weekend, whereby a home seller’s property is open to the public for a designated time period. Open houses typically last for a couple of hours, when people can come and go at their leisure. There is no appointment or qualifications necessary to enter the home. If you look, you’re bound to see weekend open houses in your area. How Do Open Houses Work? If you have never sold a home before, you may not….Continue reading on MAXIMUM REAL ESTATE EXPOSURE | BILL GASSETT
Do Open Houses Sell Homes?
Learn who benefits from an open house—from the seller, to the agents, to the buyers—and whether they actually help your home sell….read on in THE BALANCE.
“While 41% of buyers look online and 19% contact a real estate agent as the first step in the homebuying process, only 2% begin at an open house.”
An Ocala open house poses more risks than benefits. It’s not that the risks are overwhelming, but rather that the rewards are so meager as to be overshadowed by almost any risk. Therefore, we do not recommend them, but will stage them professionally and to the best effect possible if sellers insist!
Andrew Kruglanski, MBA, ABD, Broker
(352)234-3048
andy.k@ocalahomes.online