Did you recently list your property on the Plymouth, Michigan real estate market? If so, you may have already started thinking about ways in which you can attract prospective home buyers to check out your house.
One strategy that home sellers often employ is holding an open house. This allows home buyers to come during a window of time to check out your house and maybe even ask your real estate agent some questions.
But if you don’t plan your open house correctly, it could end up being a huge waste of time and possibly even money. So today, I’m going to tell you how to plan the most effective open house possible.
Properties for Sale in Michigan
First of all, Sunday afternoon tends to be the best time to hold an open house. After all, most people are going to be off of work then and home buyers love to leisurely browse the market on Sundays.
Here are some other general guidelines for planning an effective open house:
- Two to four hours is generally the best window of time to provide
- Make sure your open house doesn’t conflict with any holidays, special events or community events.
- Check the weather forecast. Rainy days are likely to deter buyers from checking out homes for sale.
About a week before your open house, you will want to remove some furniture from your home and put it in storage to make your home feel bigger and more inviting.
Don’t forget to also remove any items that you would not be willing to sell. That’s because during negotiations, everything that the buyer sees could be on the table when writing the contract. Avoid that uncomfortable situation by putting in storage anything that you definitely want to hold onto.
And don’t forget to find a suitable place for your pets to stay during the showing. With so many people filtering in and out of your home, you won’t want to have to worry about your pets.
Finally, take the time to print out some marketing materials to provide to prospective buyers during the showing, including brochures and fliers. Make sure they include all the basic information about your home as well as plenty of pictures.
Between two and three days before your open house, you’ll want to make sure your home is thoroughly cleaned. This is just like a home showing – only it’s going to last up to four hours. So you want to make sure everything is in pristine condition.
This includes:
- Buffing surfaces and appliances
- Sweeping, mopping and vacuuming the floors
- Touching up spots on the wall
- Cleaning the garage
- Giving your front and backyard some TLC to add to curb appeal
A day before your open house, put some last minute touches on your home by:
- Turning on all the light
- Opening up the windows to let fresh air flow in
- Giving every room one final look over
- Setting out pens and cards to encourage buyer feedback
Congratulations! You’re prepared for your first open house and if you and your REALTOR® have adequately prepared, hopefully it will lead to an offer!
Plymouth Michigan Real Estate
For more helpful tips on selling your home on the Plymouth housing market, please contact me, Noel Bittinger, today.
I’ll be happy to assist you by offering straight-forward advice and such resources as:
Until next time,
Noel