12 HIDDEN FACTS ABOUT ‘OPEN-HOUSES’

MAKING SENSE OF NONSENSE IN REAL ESTATE.

by Neil Jenman

Reading time: Apx 5 mins

To the average consumer, there is so much about real estate that doesn’t make sense. But agents say, “This is the way we do it.”

So, most consumers just shrug and sign-up with the agents. Big mistake.

For those who don’t feel comfortable accepting what agents tell them, here’s a brief explanation and some facts about an enduring real estate mystery – Open-Houses.

1. FRESH LEADS FOR AGENTS.

The major reason that agents push open-houses is not to sell the home that’s open for inspection. It’s to find fresh leads for agents. As one real estate trainer taught agents: “The worst thing you can do is sell the house that’s open for inspection.” Another says that “the mistake most agents make is they sell the home too quickly”. Agents need to ‘milk’ all leads before selling their great source of fresh leads.

2. MAKE IT HARD FOR BUYERS.

A golden rule of selling is: “Make it easy for buyers to buy your product.” There are 10,800 minutes in a week. To have your home “closed-for-inspection” for 10,770 minutes is marketing madness. Imagine if any business only opened for 30 minutes per week. Only in real estate.

3. BURGLARS WELCOME.

Don’t you love how agents say they get names of prospective buyers? Guess what? Burglars who ‘case’ your home for a later burglary, do not give real names.

4. NOT INSURED.

If you suffer loss or damage from an open-house, you are unlikely to be covered by insurance. Check your policy and you’ll see that it probably excludes “invited guests”. Insurance companies don’t like you inviting thieves into your home.

5. NO QUALIFYING.

Every good salesperson knows that one of the essential elements in making sales is to qualify prospective buyers. Yes, make sure they can afford the product being sold. Most agents are hopeless salespeople. They rarely “sell” homes. No, buyers buy them. There is almost no selling. Most agents don’t know how to sell.

6. GOOD BUYERS TAKE OFF.

When a good buyer wants to buy a product, good salespeople immediately do all they can to ‘hang on’ to that buyer. But what do agents do if a good buyer turns up to an open-house and wants to buy it? They let the buyers walk out and drive away.

7. NO ATTEMPT TO CLOSE SALES.

The final step to any sale is what’s known as “closing the sale”. Good closing is essential to a good result. But given that agents who conduct open-houses don’t follow other essential selling steps, most don’t have a clue how to “close” a sale (unless they bully sellers and buyers at auctions).

8. VISITORS RUBBISH THE HOME.

When sticky-beaks and tyre-kickers wander through a home, many become nit-pickers. In a loud voice, they call out faults in a home. This ‘rubbishing’ is done deliberately by some unscrupulous buyers who want other buyers to reject the home. Agents should never allow good prospects to hear the opinions of poor prospects.

9. ADVERTISING BECOMES ESSENTIAL

If you have your home open-for-inspection, you need to advertise it so that people know when it’s open. When sellers put their toe into the advertising pond, they’ll soon find themselves swallowed up in paying thousands of dollars in needless advertising.

10. PRIVACY RUINED.

Many buyers – especially those who value their privacy and security – loathe the fact that hundreds of strangers have been wandering through a home they intend to buy. If a home has not been inspected by hordes of people, that’s a great selling point. Don’t ruin such a good advantage by allowing crowds into an open-house.

11. PERFECT EXCUSE FOR LAZY AGENTS.

There are only two outcomes in the sales world – results or excuses. When agents have an open-house they blame “the market” if no one shows up. Or worse, if offers are too low. Many low offers are dummy offers to condition sellers down in price. One of the best lines (for agents to get prices down) is to say to the sellers: “You need to listen to the market.” Rubbish, you need to fire lazy agents.

12. THE COMPARISION TRAP.

If agents let buyers go wandering from home-to-home, please understand what happens. In many cases, you are forcing the price of your home down. This is because buyers see similar homes to yours and buy the one where owners are most ready to reduce the price. Instead of getting caught in the ‘comparison trap’ don’t hold an open-house. Inspections by appointment to suit [qualified] buyers.

So much of what happens in the real estate world is not how it appears. Be careful doing something because you are told “this is the way we do it”. It’s your home, you decide who does what and when it gets done. Just because a path is well-worn, it doesn’t mean it’s the right path.

For more facts and help on selling your home, please contact us at Jenman Support any time – support@jenman.com.au or 1800 1800 18. Thank you. And take care.

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