5 Ways to Prepare for an Upcoming Open House

Preparing your home for sale has a lot of steps and requirements, one of which is preparing for and hosting an open house on your property.

When you are preparing for an upcoming open house, it’s important to take into account certain details to ensure your open house is a success, meaning, it garners interest inappropriate and qualified buyers for your home. Here are 5 ways to prepare for an upcoming open house so you can check off all boxes and find the perfect buyer.

Clean, then clean some more

Cleaning prior to an open house is critical for adequate preparation. A lot of staging a home is about creating space. Cleaning is the biggest step towards creating this, and even further than that, creating the space to welcome open house guests so they can freely view your property is necessary for setting the stage for a successful open house day.

Once you’ve created the adequate space in your home cleaning wise, both inside and outside (if you have outdoor seating areas or gardens), start zoning in on the details. Bottoms of doors, areas around door knobs and light switches, and dusting lamps, fans, light bulbs, and vents go a long way when it comes to showing your home at an open house.

The little details really add up, and on top of that, at any given moment someone will be looking at some part of your home. Making sure you’re cleaning one or two steps more than you ever or usually do is the best thing to do when preparing for an open house. The more obvious it is that you value your home, the more someone else will value it.

Schedule based on location

Knowing when to schedule your open house depends a lot on your location. Every location has a certain lifestyle and keeping that in mind will help you be able to stage an open house with a local, location-based feel. Realistically, anyone looking at your home for an open house is not only interested in your home itself but also the fact that it’s in a specific location.

If people in your neighbourhood are generally busy-bodies on Sundays, for instance, consider that when you are scheduling your open house. And, consider the local schedules when you are putting out signs on the street and outside your home. You want to garner as much interest and word of mouth as possible and having a pulse on the neighbourhood and location will help you be able to successfully do this. A good app to look into is Nextdoor, where you can not only post about your open house but also know about any neighbourhood happenings so you can effectively schedule around them or with them.

Provide refreshments

Consider adding refreshments in the kitchen that reflect local culture. For instance, if your home is one of the homes for sale in Miami, consider some Cuban finger foods, or catering from a local or nearby bakery.

Refreshments are a great way to create a nice open house atmosphere and experience without overwhelming guests.

Leave notes

A lot of times, the owners of a home aren’t present at an open house. In fact, this is usually ideal as it may be difficult for a potential buyer to view your home with you in it while simultaneously feeling like they can imagine themselves within the walls.

A good way to tell the story of your property as it applies to prospective buyers, that is, a good way to point them to the value of your home based on its experiences, is to leave notes. This gives you the advantage of being able to make sure they don’t miss key experiences within your property that sets it apart from the rest and makes it valuable while also not being present.

Sometimes, homeowners leave notes about prices of certain key pieces of furniture or beautiful pieces of furniture, and you can even mark on the note that the price of the piece isn’t included in the sale of your home. This adds value on top of value but also is a great way to add a little negotiation power to your deal.

Have a sign-in book and follow up

People will be coming in and out of your home during an open house and it’s important, if you can, to get their contact information so you can follow up appropriately after the open house is over.

Leaving a little sign-in book near the door with a nice notebook and a nice pen is a great way to have guests leave their contact information for you so you can follow up accordingly. Also, adding a “notes” section after asking for their name, phone, and email is a nice way to possibly see who is most interested and gauge the order of your outreach effectively.

Having a successful open house requires some legitimate preparation and groundwork, but if you are able to take into account these important details listed above you will be putting yourself on the top of the pile when it comes to the number of open houses one single interested buyer will experience. Taking the time to consider these details set you apart enough to keep you adequately prepared while also addressing practical details, and utilizing any of them will get you one step closer to finding the perfect buyer and closing on your home.