The time has come! We are merely days away from opening the front door and welcoming all the home-buying public to see your house or condo.
Setting the stage, the listing agent communicated with you, the homeowner, to prepare for this day – by agreeing to have your agent hire a professional photographer, taking responsibility to declutter and spruce up the home, and pricing it right on Day One. Now comes “Show Time”!
The aim of showcasing the home is to make it appear warm, inviting, welcoming and aiming for not just curb appeal but wow appeal. A sharp listing agent has already planned those special touches – fresh flowers at the front door and on a featured table in the home, a soft aroma floating throughout the rooms, as if someone had just baked an apple pie. What a great lasting impression for buyers. (Yes, some agents do bake pies in the home to produce that amazing smell and the seller typically benefits by getting a free dessert!)
In advance of the opening weekend, listing agents will work with sellers to ensure every party understands the process of showing a home and their responsibilities. It’s important that everyone agrees to the How, When and Who of showing the home.
Sellers may not realize this but their agents are working tirelessly behind the scenes to make this a satisfying experience for clients and a memorable moment for buyers visiting the home. At John L. Scott, listing agents like to give neighbors and their friends an extra advantage and offer an exclusive showing. We call this moment Early Entry for Neighbors; it involves listing agents communicating with as many people in an area within short distance of the listed home and inviting them to see the property before the public open house.
We like to paint this simple picture in their minds: “Neighbors, do you know a friend or family member who always wanted to live near you? Here’s your chance to preview our newly listed home before everyone else as well as meet with other neighbors. And, by the way, bring that friend or family member with you!” What a powerful statement by the listing agent. And, what a nice gesture by a neighbor to his friend or family member.
The home listing – with detailed description and powerful imagery – hits the Northwest MLS database and feeds other real estate search sites and apps on the same day, usually a Thursday or Friday before the big open house weekend. People also learn of the new listing via several real estate websites – both national and global – affiliated with John L. Scott, as well as through social media, traditional mail and broker-to-broker communication.
Sellers living in the home should plan to enjoy a trip out of town that first weekend or at least stay out of the home for about six hours around the typical four-hour open house. Understand that sellers must trust his/her listing agent to both present the home in the best possible light and return the premises in the same condition as it was before the owners departed.
Signs to indicate the home is for sale and available to view during the open house will appear on the lawn or in a safe place on the sidewalk. Agents typically keep “For Sale” signs on the owner’s property but remove off-property signage at the conclusion of the open house.
Open house means the home is open to the public – the first weekend and hopefully every weekend until an offer has been accepted. Sellers must realize every corner of the place may be checked by curious buyers – including (sadly) the medicine cabinet, private study or book shelves. Remove items that are personal in nature or would be difficult to replace if lost. Brokers can be – but are not usually – liable for lost or stolen items.
Remember, pets and kids should be out of the home as well. And keep the Roomba – the one that seems to have a mind of its own – turned off and safely stored.
If sellers approve, food and/or drink may be offered to guests in an act that can attract more buyers. People love free food. (Just take a walk through Costco any weekend!)
In addition to open houses, brokers will wish to visit with their buyers/clients at other times for a scheduled viewing of the home. Listing agents will provide these brokers with instructions on how and when to enter the property. The agent will work with sellers and agree on a good time to have buyers visit when no one is home. (It’s poor form to have a seller in the home while a prospective buyer views the place and will possibly kill the chance of receiving an offer.)
Sellers have the right to reject a home viewing for any reason – sickness, birthday party or Seahawks Sunday, for example – but keep in mind it’s always important to communicate with listing agents in advance of those moments to avoid any mixed signals.
In a scheduled appointment, a buyer’s broker will show the home for 15-45 minutes depending on the size of the property. Sellers should allow an extra 45 minutes after the showing should have concluded before returning home. The aim for sellers is to avoid interacting with any broker or buyer, even if it means driving around the block one or three times!
A good listing agent will follow up and seek feedback from the broker, information that could help sellers adjust the home’s layout or curb appeal. Not all buyer brokers offer feedback, so sellers should not be alarmed when they don’t hear any news following a showing.
Other helpful tips for sellers as they prepare to have buyers visit:
- Remove any last-minute clutter – today’s mail or newspaper or food-shop lists and clipped coupons;
- Make people feel physically comfortable by appropriately setting the thermostat for the anticipated guests;
- Try to keep the home appearing similar to the photos in the marketing materials;
- Put away dishes, ensure floors are free of toys (dog’s and children’s), and carpets are recently vacuumed;
- Open all curtains and blinds to add natural light;
- Put toilet seat lids down and make sure the bathroom smells fresh and clean;
- Disarm alarm systems before leaving the home (don’t share system codes with anyone!) and make sure the doors are locked; the listing agent and fellow brokers have access to the keys/fobs in a secure lockbox on-premises and will take responsibility for returning them each time they are retrieved.
Naturally, your listing agent will make some additional (but minor) adjustments – if necessary – and will report back at the end of the day.
Are you ready to have your home showcased? Let’s do this!