Tips for a successful open home

When a home hits the market, one of the first tasks for the seller is to put on an open house. If your home is listed our real estate agent, our agent will give you some tips and advice on how to prepare your home and organise the open house.

Initial Realty agents and support marketing team will put your home list to our various media and personal networks to ensure the maximum number of potential buyers view your home, increasing its chances of selling quickly for a better price. While technology has changed some aspects of open houses, others, such as the importance of making a good first impression remains the same.

Clean and tidy indoors and out.

You already know the basics: The house is clean and well-maintained. And you might have employed a bit of staging of furniture, throws and best china on the dining table to set the mood.
But when it comes to making your open home a success

Protect your belongings.
Remove or lock up any valuables. Your agent cannot be in every room with every prospective buyer at once, so be smart about what you leave out.

Remove pets. Dogs, cats or other pets should neither be seen nor heard during the open house. If they can't be removed from the house, they need to be confined to a less trafficked space.

Plan to be away.
As your real estate agent is organising the open house, there’s no reason for you to attend your own open house. Reason being is so that the buyers need to picture themselves in the house. While you are around with kids, family or friends, it will be harder for them to envision themselves without your presence.

Choose an off peak hour.
Most open houses are Saturday, or more often Sunday, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. or from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Chances are buyers will hit several open houses the same day. At the beginning, they are excited about all the houses they’re going to tour. They fly through them eager to see the next one.

Have a good open home and feel free to ask us if you have any further questions.