How to Host a Successful Rental Open House

When seeking to fill a vacant rental home, you can advertise and make appointments to show the home, which means random trips to the home many times. As a property manager I prefer to pick a date and set up a great open house. How do you host a successful open house when the house is empty and unfurnished? Believe me it is possible.

Hosting an Open House- Planning

Choose a time when many people are not working, such as a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, or an evening. Decide how long you want to be there and put it on your schedule.

Hosting an Open House- Advertising

Place ads at free online classifieds such as Craigslist, or your community website. Distribute flyers with the information about the open house and place a large sign in front of the home. You can buy a bright yellow sign with its own hardware for about $9.00 at a hardware store. I prefer a For Rent sign with the phone number, and an Open House sign with the date and time.

* Make sure that all the ads include the homes address so that people can find it! ( Don't ask, but this is definitely an important step.)

Hosting an Open House- Preparation

Make sure that the home is clean and shiny inside and out. Touch up flower beds and landscaping so that the whole place looks welcoming and inviting. Type up and make copies of an information sheet for the home that include school district, cable services, phone service, and utility information. This way you won't spend a lot of time answering the same questions over and over.

Hosting an Open House- Opening the House

On the day of the open house, open up the windows and doors weather permitting, and let the fresh air circulate through the home, or spray some Febreeze Air Effects around the house. Set up a counter with applications, pens, and the home information sheets. Purchase a few gallons of punch, some chips, and disposable cups. Make sure to have a trash bag on hand for waste. Blow up some balloons and tie them to your Open House sign, and you're ready.

Hosting an Open House- The Event

People may show up a few at a time, or trickle in one by one, or you may end up sitting around eating chips by yourself for a while. Have a book on hand to keep you occupied while you wait. When people do arrive greet them and show them through the home, answer any questions they have then direct them to the information area and let them know they can fill out an application while they are there or take it with them. Encourage them to wander the grounds or walk beck through on their own and to partake of the snacks.

I enjoy doing open houses because it is better to be at the home for a few hours one day and get a few applications, than to run over to the house 3 or 4 times a week and have people not show for their appointments, or not want an application. By arranging an open house I am showing the home on my terms and at my convenience instead of running out 20 minutes after I get a phone call and wasting an hour or more of my day just to have someone say they will get back to me, and I never hear from them again. People who do that are wasting my time, my energy, and my paper products when they take applications and info sheets without intending to apply for the house. I am aware that during an Open House the same thing occurs, but it doesn't seem to bother me as much in that situation. I guess I figure at that point I am there anyway and may find a good tenant out of the crowd so it is worth a little bit of a time waste.