SHOWHOUSES STILL WORK

Showhouses still REALLY work. Worldwide, well-priced homes sell faster when they're on show

Selling a property needs a range of approaches. One important tool is still a Show House. Around the world, even in countries where on-line buying and selling is well entrenched, the industry view is that Show Houses offer something other selling strategies don't.

Depending on roads, suburbs and countries globally, 15 to 50 percent of properties sell directly or indirectly because of Show Houses.

Whichever percentage, any number matters in a well-orchestrated marketing strategy.

Buying property is around emotion. As familiar as South Africans are with on-line interaction, nothing beats stepping into that home, with ample, unstressed time to walk around and get the feel of it. That's the moment where a buyer falls in love with a property.   

Wakefields examined Show Houses from both the buyers and the sellers' perspective. As Wakefields CEO Myles Wakefield said, "Show houses still work. Nothing trumps the lack of pressure on a Sunday afternoon, when the family is free to come with you, and in your own time, you can examine and re-examine the aspects of a home that matters to you. Even ask questions you might not ask if the owner was there. Show Houses Work."

BUYERS love Show Houses

That's why they go to them.

Think about it. Looking for property to buy should be a wonderful process, and it can be...but often, it's not. As a buyer who's sold, you're under pressure to buy; as a buyer who hasn't sold, you're trying to stay within your affordability range. You know what boxes you'd like to tick, but looking at the various online property portals, it's difficult to assess what the property actually feels like.

You'll only know if it's the Right One when you walk through that door, feel the reality for yourself.  At a Show Day, you can wander through at your own pace, and when you're entirely satisfied, have asked all the questions you want to, have decided it potentially is, or absolutely isn't, for you, you can stay or move on...head off to look at the next Show House. Nothing awkward about it - the owners aren't there, so there's no tiptoeing around owner sensitivities.   

SELLERS have questions about Show Houses

• I'm concerned about security. Am I putting my property at risk?

It's a fair concern, and that's why we begin the Show House process by talking you through the preventative measures we take to secure your property.

• If a house is large, we could have two agents on the premises to increase our presence there. 
• We advise you, the homeowner, on the sensible things to do to contribute to security - ensuring any valuables are out of sight or securely locked away. Common sense rules, wherever you live, wherever you walk.  
• We have actively partnered with Blue Security. When we have a Show House, the patrolmen in the area know we are On Show in your property. Prior to the Show Day, we establish emergency cell phone contact between the sales consultant and the patrolman, so should anything untoward occur, it's the press of a button...and they're there. To date, we've never had to use that button.

• Surely private appointments are sufficient, rather than a mass viewing?

 Yes, we certainly do sell well-priced homes on appointments. However, the advantage of a Show House is that you have a number of prospective buyers there, at the same time. A show house is unintimidating for buyers, they feel comfortable strolling through your home  without pressure. There's great value in that.

• It's a nuisance. I have to fill in time all Sunday afternoon.

The positives outweigh the negatives - this could be the afternoon in which your buyer walks through the door with his family and in-laws, and knows instinctively as the kids shout with enthusiasm, the in laws love it, that that is the home for them. That hands-on experience isn't possible on line.

Show Houses work

It's proven time and time again, Show Houses work. Perhaps not on the day, but a follow-up in the following week. For committed sellers, it's part and parcel of smart-selling your home.