Today, I’m talking about running open houses during busy holiday weekends. I had a question yesterday from one of my clients, “Do you do have an open house on a holiday weekend? Don’t you? What has that been like?” To answer that, I want to give some perspective and talk about the do’s and don’ts.

When I was actively selling, I did many open houses on really popular holiday weekends. I was surprised at how many people were very appreciative because they had time off, were looking for homes and thought it was a perfect opportunity to get out and about. So from the buyer’s perspective, the convenience-factor is there. From your perspective, if you have nothing to do on the holiday and you’re up for it, then do it.

However, challenges can come up if (and when) an offer comes in. On a holiday weekend, your sellers may be out of town and not available. If the buyers send you the offer on Saturday and it’s a long weekend, you could be sitting on an offer, unable to pass it on to your client or act on it until the following Tuesday. Some of the questions you need to answer for potential buyers and their agents are, “It’s a holiday, how does it work if we write an offer? Are you available if we come through the open house and we love it?” Be ready with these answers and make sure you can commit to the availability.

I’ve got a few tips that I want to share with you.

• Set your availability – First and foremost, if you are going to do something on the weekend, be very clear with all parties involved about availability. Set the hours and days you’ll be running the open house, and what hours and days you will be available to receive the offer. Make sure your sellers understand when their home will be shown. (This may require some creative scheduling if they are still living at the property.)
• Set expectations – Make sure to set clear expectations with any agents that may come through the open house with their clients. Let agents know what time you might be accepting offers. Be clear on when offers can expect to receive a response.
• Clarify responsibility – Be very clear with the agents it’s also their job to be available, in the event you need them. Remind them if a long weekend includes a bank holiday that might cause a delay.

I highly recommend that if you’re going to do the open houses, make sure that you disclose very clearly when you are available, when you are not, and what your expectations are.

What’s very interesting during the holiday times, a lot people would have time off, I would always note that my open house traffic went up during that time. I don’t believe it’s going to be any different. Buyers absolutely want to get in to see the property. A lot of offers are being written right now without inspections, so even being able to go in and visually inspect a property for many people is critical.

If you have the time and the where-with-all to do it, go ahead and do it. Potential buyers will be thrilled to see you, and I bet you are going to have a super busy open house.

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By Denise Lones CSP, M.I.R.M., CDEI – The founding partner of The Lones Group, Denise Lones, brings nearly three decades of experience in the real estate industry. With agent/broker coaching, expertise in branding, lead generation, strategic marketing, business analysis, new home project planning, product development, Denise is nationally recognized as the source for all things real estate. With a passion for improvement, Denise has helped thousands of real estate agents, brokers, and managers build their business to unprecedented levels of success, while helping them maintain balance and quality of life.