When it comes time to sell your home, there are many approaches you can take to get people interested. Your initial goal needs to be drawing in as many people as you can to look at your property. Frankly, nothing is going to beat a firsthand experience like the one an open house can deliver. And as with anything in life, there are going to be dos and don’ts during this process. In this article, we will discuss the four most important mistakes to avoid when holding an open house in NYC.

The benefits of having an open house

Open houses are one of the best ways to show your home to a large number of people in a short time. You may not always be able to sell your home solely based on holding an open house, but they do offer some significant benefits:

• Low-pressure environment. You don’t force people who come to look at the property to negotiate. A larger number of people will be willing to just drop by for a look if there are no strings attached.

• Attract casual buyers. Some people may not be ready to make an offer on listings, or maybe they don’t even know how the home buying process works. By having them pop in for a viewing, you are getting more exposure.

• Buyers view the home on your terms. Private showing requests are sometimes scheduled on short notice, and you may not have as much time to prepare the home for your broker as you would with an open house.

Open houses can help you play the numbers and attract a lot of attention.

4 mistakes to avoid when holding an open house in NYC

1. Sticking around and bothering viewers

As a general rule, you as the owner should not be present at any showings or open houses. Being present only puts unnecessary pressure on those viewing your home. Remember that potential buyers are there just to take a look at the property, not to start a negotiation with you. Instead of doing the showing yourself, we recommend hiring an agent experienced in open houses. Stand back and give your agent some space to do their job; they will be able to handle the viewers a lot better than you can.

Besides making yourself scarce, we recommend dropping your kids off at a friend’s or relative’s house while you are hosting the showing. Having your kids run around while you are trying to entice viewers to carefully consider your home is one of the most important mistakes to avoid when holding an open house in NYC.

Unsupervised kids can cause a mess and make a lot of noise. That’s definitely not the atmosphere in which you want the potential buyers to experience your home. It’s also a good idea to remove your pets while viewers are coming to look at the house. You never know who is allergic to pets, so it’s best to avoid unpleasant situations. God forbid if your pet starts jumping on someone’s leg. Just steer clear of that entire scenario and drop your pets off at a daycare center.

Don’t leave your children unsupervised while you are holding an open house

2. Revealing too much info

The negotiation process is a constant push and pull, where both parties are trying to get the upper hand. However, people are there just to view the house, and the negotiations are still a long way off. Don’t let slip how rushed to sell you are or how much you are willing to drop the price. Also, don’t mention that you are ready to move out. When the sale goes through, you can get the relocation organized in no time if you have reliable local movers on call. Talking about moving out won’t win you any favor with the buyers.

Being too eager to sell might get people interested in buying the home. Unfortunately, it will also cost you a lot of money if the buyers realize you are willing to give in easily.

3. Having the house in disarray

Obviously, when holding an open house, you will want to put your best foot forward and show your home in pristine condition. If your home is in a state of disarray, viewers aren’t even going to give it the time of day. In order to get your home ready, there are some things you can do yourself. Be thorough when cleaning and declutter as much as you can. A clean and empty home will look bigger, and it will help prospective buyers visualize what they could do with it. Red flags like unwashed laundry and dirty dishes will immediately stand out to anyone who comes to view the property. You can also hire a professional cleaner to do deep cleaning and get rid of any persistent odors.

4. Overstaging your home

Any agent will tell you that you need to stage your home for a viewing. Although you want your home to look nice, it’s important that you don’t go too far. Overdoing it will cause people to wonder what you are hiding; New Yorkers seem to have a sixth sense for that kind of thing. If you aren’t sure how much is too much, you can always ask your agent for tips on staging and presentation. Here are some things you should avoid when staging your house:

• Too many flowers or decorations

• Strong fragrances

• Loud music

• Weird art

Is this a house or a museum? Don’t confuse viewers.

The bottom line

Now that you've gone through our list of the 4 most important mistakes to avoid when holding an open house in NYC, we are sure that your showing will be a total success. If you work with your agent and open your home up to viewers, it will surely garner a lot of attention.