Open Houses- Are They Worth It?

    Let’s be real for a minute. There is one specific part of my job that I absolutely dread.

    Putting up open house signs.

    It’s repetitive. Drive a little, stick a sign in the ground, drive a little more, stick another sign. By the time I’m done planting 50 signs around the neighborhood—especially in the dead heat of summer—I am usually a sweaty mess before I even unlock the front door.

    So, why on earth do I keep doing it? Why go through the hassle every weekend?

    There is only one reason: It works.

The "Old-Fashioned" Myth

    I am constantly surprised when new clients list their homes with me and say things like, "Oh, don't bother with an open house. My last agent said they don't work anymore." Or they'll ask, "Isn't that a bit old-fashioned?

    "Doesn't everyone just look online now?"

    I’m here to tell you that is simply not true.

While professional online photos and virtual tours are incredibly important, they cannot replace the physical experience of a home. I have sold countless houses specifically because someone decided to stop by an open house on a whim.

If They Walk It, They Love It

    If you need proof that open houses still work, just look at who does them more than anyone else in the world: New Construction Builders.

    New builds have open houses model homes open seven days a week. Why would multi-million dollar companies invest in staffing those homes every single day?

    Because they know a fundamental truth about real estate: if you can get people to physically walk through the house, they have a chance to "fall in love" with it. You can’t fall in love with a JPEG on a screen the same way you can when you walk into a living room and imagine your family there.

    That emotional connection makes things happen.

Not All Open Houses Are Created Equal

    There is a caveat here. Putting one dinky sign at the end of the street and sitting on the couch playing on your phone for two hours is not an effective open house strategy.

    We don't do "average" open houses. We have secrets to ensure ours are successful traffic-drivers:

• Massive Signage: Yes, I hate doing it, but I put up 50 signs to flood the zone and ensure everyone driving by knows exactly where to go.
• Active Marketing: We mail out postcards announcing the event.
• Neighbor Invitations: We specifically invite the neighbors. Why? Because they usually know friends or family members who are trying to move into the area.
• Make it an Event: Sometimes we even turn it into a party to make it welcoming and high-energy.

The Bottom Line on Traffic

    At the end of the day, I can’t sell your house if we don't have traffic.

    You need eyes on the property and bodies in the doorway. A strategically planned, well-marketed open house is still one of the best ways to drive that traffic.

    It might mean a sweaty afternoon for me putting up signs, but it means a "SOLD" sign for you.