Leaving Cards

Someone once asked me, after I had shown him at least 15 properties, why I left a business card at each house.

I have a business card. Most realtors have business cards. We give them to people; we include them in hand-written notes; we include them with presentations. When we show a property to a potential buyer, we leave a business card in a prominent place. Sometimes it's on the kitchen counter or the dining room table. We do this as a courtesy to let the seller & the seller's agent know that we stopped by. The seller doesn't have to wonder if we are running late & we are still coming. The seller also knows who is responsible if something is "different" when they come back. The seller's agent knows that, since we have shown the property, he or she can find out what the buyer thought.

Sometimes, when a house is vacant, there will be lots of business cards on the kitchen counter. Like a dozen. Then it is interesting for the buyer's agent to see who has shown the property. Or how many people have looked at the property. Although seller's agents try to pick up cards & check vacant properties weekly, that isn't always possible. So a dozen cards in a week may be a lot, but a dozen cards over 3 months is not a lot.

To summarize: I put out a business card when I show a property to a buyer to let the seller & seller's agent know that I really came into the house & showed the property, & when the seller comes back to the house, I'm done. I also put out a business card to let other realtors know that I have shown this property to a potential buyer. And I notice whose cards are there.

Inside Real Estate: Open Houses, part 2

Inside the house, I like to have information available for them. I place the information closer to the door than I am standing or sitting, so they don’t have to go past me to see it. I want them to feel comfortable picking up materials, but not pressured to do so.

I like to have a flyer with details about the property and a flyer with financing information. People are curious about the monthly payments and how much money they need for a down payment.

I also like to have little bottles of water, my keyboard cleaners, and business cards. Sometimes I have a jar for a drawing for a gas gift card, movie tickets or something like that. People don’t have to give me their information when they meet me, but if they are interested in the drawing, they will fill out their name, email, and phone number. After the open house, I can let them know if they won anything or not, thank them for coming, and let them know that I’d be glad to help them find a home to buy.

When people arrive, I usually greet them, introduce myself, and give them the flyers. I tell them I’m available for questions, then I usually let them wander on their own. Sometimes I’ll make comments or be nearby (if the house is big or currently occupied), but I like to give them time to look and talk without interruptions.

People stay for different lengths of time. Usually the longer people stay, the more they like it or the more curious they are about the property. At the end, I gather up my stuff and give a report to my seller. I wrote this during an open house that had three different parties—one couple, one mom with two older daughters, and one neighbor. (There usually is at least one neighbor who shows up out of curiosity.) If there aren’t any offers or showings in the next couple weeks, I’ll have another open house at the same place. The more the property is in the public eye, the greater the chance of getting it sold!!

Inside Real Estate: Open Houses, part 1

Everyone does open houses differently, based on the type of property or the realtor’s preferences. Some realtors think that open houses are done for the property to get more exposure and some think that it is done for the realtor to get more clients. I like to do open houses for the seller. I advertise in the local newspaper and I put up signs. Sometimes people come because they have seen the ad in the paper; sometimes they come because they have seen the signs. Often, people who come to open houses are people who are not working with a realtor who searches the local multiple-listing system (MLS). This is a way to see the property.

Here in Grand Junction, it is best to have open houses on Sunday. When they are on Sunday, it is best to have them not conflict with baseball games or football games. Realtors CAN have open houses then, but most people don’t show up during the games. They are watching their team instead.

I choose a time slot of 3-4 hours either before or after the game. I have 6 open house signs and I like to have one in the front yard and put the other 5 around two ways to get to the house. I place the open house signs on major roads and then at turns to the property. I like to have 1-3 balloons on each sign. I make sure the signs are obvious at a street corner and that the balloons are tied to the sign with a short ribbon. I don’t want the balloons to be in the way of people who are biking or walking.