Kopa Real Estate Blog

One of the things Kopa Real Estate does very well is promoting our open houses.

Despite other Realtors saying open houses are not an effective way to sell homes many of our listings sell to buyers who visit our open houses. We have even sold several homes to buyers whose agents never visited the house. We sold the buyers the home and they had their agent write up the contract for them.

We always recommend our clients who are buying a home have us show them homes they are interested in but we know it’s tempting to visit an open house alone on occasion.

Over the years of holding open houses we have learned some helpful tips to pass on to our clients who may visit an open house without us.

This advice is for serious buyers in competitive markets. If you are only a casual looker there is no need to follow this advice.

• Dress Professionally
  
  Like it or not people make judgments on how you dress. Many times when reviewing multiple offers with our clients the sellers we represent will ask us if the buyers look professional. What they are really saying is does this person have the financial resources to buy their home.
  
  It’s tempting not to care how you dress especially in Austin but if you want to give yourself every chance of your offer being accepted it’s better to look professional.

• Introduce yourself to the listing agent
  
  We’re all afraid of salespeople. It’s common for open house guests to act secretive, even a little cagey. This does not work in your favor.
  
  Instead, introduce yourself by first and last name to the listing agent and tell the listing agent the name of your Realtor.
  
  When there are multiple offers on a home most sellers are concerned about accepting an offer from someone who has not visited the property. They will ask if you have seen their home. If we don’t know you have seen the home chances are the seller will accept another offer.

• Act Like You Love The Home
  
  This is not the time to act picky.
  
  Often open house guests who don’t understand the market conditions think they are being smart by pointing our all the things wrong with a home. The thinking is they will be able to negotiate a better deal by reinforcing the blemishes of a home.
  
  Instead, tell the listing agent specific things you love about the home. Many times when our clients are reviewing multiple offers on their home they will ask us if a buyer seemed like they loved their house. If we say you are picky the chances of your offer getting accepted against someone who seems easy to please is not good.
  
  We know you may not want to do that but if you expect there to be multiple offers on the home the sellers knowing exactly what you love about the house could be the difference between your offer getting accepted or you continuing to search for another home.

I hope these open house tips are helpful. If you have any questions about buying or selling real estate in the Austin area please call/text Eric Peterson at 512-791-7473.

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