"FSBO" or "buying foreclosures"
"Chicago, IL" or "Florida"
Views: 35372
Open House Checklist
Having an open house? Here's a checklist of things you should make sure you've done before your open house:
- Double check that your home is white-glove clean and de-cluttered of personal stuff, including things you may be very proud of but which are not appropriate for open houses, such as unusual paintings or family portraits. The reason agents ask sellers to remove pictures of themselves and their family is to make the house seem neutral. You want the buyer to imagine themselves living there.
- If you're working with an agent, be sure you understand exactly when the open houses will be, including a mid-week "brokers only" open house. Your agent will likely conduct all the open houses her/himself, and in fact many state licensing departments stipulate that a licensed agent must conduct MLS-affiliated open houses. If your agent has some last-minute emergency preventing her from being present (or another open house), she will send another licensed agent. Weekend afternoons are obviously the best time to attract the largest number of house hunters.
- Your agent will take care of advertisements on your house. Always double check that details on your home are accurate (number of bdrms/bths., correct address, etc.). Advertisements including general directions to your home from the nearest main traffic artery or freeway or a link to an online map with driving directions can be very helpful. Convenience is #1.
- While working with an agent, plan to leave during your open house. No one wants to see sellers loitering around, and most agents won't allow it anyway.
- Be sure to safely store your valuables and prescription medications. It's rare, but occasionally theives will target open houses. Usually one person will distract the agent while the other looks for valuables.
- Keep your eyes on the prize! That means, in the words of the agent quoted above, that you might need to realign your attitude about your home. For you it holds a million memories. For a house hunter your home is one of many available for sale. The house hunter doesn't care about your experiences in the home and may not share your taste in home improvements. Think of your home as something you want to sell so you can move onto the next phase of your life. Try to detach your emotions and the selling process will be a lot easier and faster too. Remember that the pros refer to your home and every other home on the market as "inventory." And the idea is to sell "inventory," not to keep it on the shelf.
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