A lot of sellers I work with in the Dane County area think the best way to sell their home is to have an open house. I believe some of this thinking may come from what they’ve seen on HGTV or copying what their neighbors did when they sold their home. The reality is that less than 7% of all listings get their buyer from an open house (and some of that is just from seeing the sign in the yard and not necessarily attending the open house).

According to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), 51% of home buyers found their home online. The 2nd most popular way for home buyers to find their home was through their realtor (28%). Most realtors, including myself, set up a home search for their buyers so that they are immediately notified as soon as a home becomes available online that might meet their criteria. I’m guessing the true number for both statistics may be somewhere in between.

This is why it’s crucial your home looks great the minute it goes online. If your realtor thinks it’s okay to add pictures later or to use their cell phone to take pictures of your home, I would strongly disagree. Buyers can be turned off by poor pictures and choose to not set up a showing, especially if there’s other homes they can see that look much better online.

This can also affect how long it will take to sell your home.

The internet is definitely changing how homes are sold. I prefer to do more of an online open house by posting a virtual tour with all of my listings. This gives buyers the ability to walk through the house (via video and/or an interactive floor plan) at a time that’s convenient for them. If they like what they see, they can take the next step and see the home in person. This can save buyers time by only looking at homes they’re truly interested in.

I’ve had many buyers purchase the first home they’ve seen in person. They almost always ask me if that’s okay. I assure them it is okay because they’ve already looked at many homes online, which helped them narrow down exactly what they were looking for.

Virtual tours are beneficial for the seller too because it brings more quality buyers, which results in a fewer number of showings. This saves the seller a lot of time and effort if they don’t have to repeatedly get their home ready for a showing. 

Want to see an example of a virtual tour? Check out the Featured Listings on my website YourNextFrontPorch and click on the virtual tour tab on the pictures.

With the recent pandemic, germs have also become something to think about that wasn’t necessarily on anyone’s mind in the past.

I attended an open house in Sun Prairie with my buyers in the early months of the pandemic and was horrified to not only see the number of people walking through the house (without social distancing), but to see all of the things they were touching, including a crib in a baby's room.

I know some sellers that are just not comfortable taking that kind of a risk.

Why are open houses still held then? Most agents use them as a way to meet more buyers and future clients. I rarely hold an open house. The value I see in them is for feedback if a home hasn’t sold, whether it’s coming from the nosey neighbor, the unqualified buyer or my mom walking through the home.

Have any questions? Let me know!