Neala: Who are the real beneficiaries of an open house? What are the ...

মঙ্গলবার, ২৫ সেপ্টেম্বর, ২০১২

Who are the real beneficiaries of an open house? What are the ...

Open houses are a thing of the past. They made sense when properties for sale where not easily?accessible?to buyers and when agents where using printed property directories to find properties for their clients. Those days are gone. Nowadays, buyers do not need an agent to find them a property. Buyers can (and like) to search and find properties for sale on their own. The truth is that the most important job of a real estate agent is not to find a property to their buyers and to find a buyer to their sellers.?Why not?

Because buyers need an agent to:

conduct a market analysis to ensure that sales price is no higher than the market value price,
write up an offer, to negotiate the terms of the contract, to negotiate repairs after inspection was completed,
ensure that the required documents the contract dictates if provided to the buyers within the prescribed time frame.

And because sellers need an agent to:

help them prepare the property for sale -decluttering, repairs and staging-,
conduct a market analysis to price the property at a market value price,
market the property online -property description, pictures and mandated listing documents-,
negotiate the offers that come in, the negotiate repairs after inspection was completed,
ensure that all of the required documents are completed as the contract dictates.

In summary, buyers and sellers need a licensed real estate professional to guide and protect them from the time they have their first contact to the day the transaction is closed.

Another important piece of information I have been disclosing to my sellers is that open houses are not done with the goal of?selling?that particular property. I let my sellers know that the real beneficiary of an open house is going to be me. I also let my sellers know that most of the open house attendees are going to be?their?curious?neighbors and people that are driving around the neighborhood.?If you are selling or considering to sell your property, you need to know this.

See, the truth of the matter is that agents conduct open houses to market themselves (and their broker) AND to ?convert? unrepresented buyers into their clients. Open houses are a way for agents to expand their data base to then expand their business. And they do. I heard it first-hand how new agents, especially new-to-town-agents built their data base and got a few new clients by doing open houses when they started?their?business and?their?business was ?slow?. In fact, a previous broker of mine mandated that I and all the other new agents completed a ?New Agents Training? in which a class on how to take advantage of open houses was taught to all of us as a tool to expand our client base and find new buyers.

So, now you know who the real beneficiary of an open house is and since you like your agent so much, you are still considering allowing him/her to do open houses to help them grow their business. Your are still thinking ?It doesn?t hurt me and maybe, just maybe, a buyer may fall in love with my house at the open house and buy it?. Not so true?

In Texas at least, visitors of an open house are not mandated, nor they are asked, to provide a valid picture ID before they enter into an open house. Most agents holding an open house have a sign-in sheet asking for visitors to register with their name and a phone number or email and ? that?s it. Most visitors register with a fake name and they are in the house. No questions asked.

Once the visitor ?registered?, s/he is allowed to roam the property at their own will while the agent sits either in the kitchen or living area greeting other visitors or doing some personal work -updating?their?database, writing Thank-You notes and the like.

Alright. If you having figure it out yet, let me tell you what some of the dangers are by having strangers roaming your property at their leisure:

They can be?studying?your property for a future break-in by taking account of the existence and location of a security system, windows, visibility of back door, etc.
They may take with them some of your belongings: jewelry and medicine are the most sought-after items.
They may be studying your family profile by the pictures you have displayed and the clothing in your closets: ?This looks like a adult-female and two young children home? my buyers recently commented when I showed them a property.

I personally think that the marketing strategies some agents are using to capture more listings -such as offering open houses as a marketing tool to ?benefit? the seller- are not only deceitful but unethical. Article 1 of the ?Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice of the National Association of REALTORS?? states:

??When representing a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant, or other client as an agent, REALTORS? pledge themselves to protect and promote the interests of their client. This obligation to the client is primary, but it does not relieve REALTORS? of their obligation to treat all parties honestly. When serving a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant or other party in a non-agency capacity, REALTORS? remain obligated to treat all parties honestly. (Amended 1/01)?

Information is power. The goal of this article is to empower prospective sellers and sellers so they can make informed decisions when it comes to deciding if they would allow?their?listing agent or broker to hold their house open.

Happy selling you?all!