Three Open House Traps Buyers Should Avoid

Trap 3: Getting caught up in the charm of staging

If it's an open house where everyone's milling about, you'll probably just have to use your imagination, but keep in mind that there are a lot of things that are designed to make the house more attractive and could possibly distract you from the larger picture. After all, those baked cookies in the kitchen smell great, but odds are, even if your family loves food, you're not going to always have baked cookies in your kitchen 24/7.

In other words, try to imagine your family in the house and look at it critically. Wethman, who granted, is trained in this sort of thing, once was at an open house and noticed some shades drawn. She pulled them open "to see that there was a huge power transformer right outside the bedroom window."

Even bubbling fountains in the front yard and mood music should be viewed suspiciously -- are they there to just set the mood, or to cover up some annoying noise inside or outside the house? You may not want to play Mozart each time a train passes by.

And look at the lighting. It's probably as bright as possible, but unless you're hoping for a high electric bill, you probably plan on dimming the lights occasionally.

So if you're able to at an open house, dim the lights for a moment and see what the room looks like. If you can, turn off the mood music. And if you really want to get a sense of what the house will be like, bring along your husband's dirty socks or your cat litter box to neutralize the air-freshener. OK, maybe that last idea goes a little too far.

But you get the idea. Know your senses are being played to, and you'll be able to better retain your common sense. For instance, Joyce Wilden, the owner of BUZZ Biz PR in Melbourne, Florida, has been doing marketing for the homebuilding industry for about 20 years, and says that the cookies in the kitchen trick is one of the oldest in the book.

"When the smell of baking cookies reaches you, it evokes memories of holidays, close family ties and special occasions. And it just smells wonderful," notes Wilden. "The agent or salesperson on site will bake them right in the oven of the model home and will certainly offer you some from a plate -- just as your mom, grandma or aunt might have done in years past. This promotes a feeling of trust, imperative for the sales person."

But Wilden takes this even further, making this a psychological tool beyond compare, adding, "And when you eat a cookie -- especially with the agent -- you are engaging in an act that you usually reserve for close friends and family, again bringing you one step closer to a relationship of trust."

Of course, you're probably thinking -- it's just a cookie. A cookie. But it's common, seriously, that fresh baked cookies show up at open houses. There's a reason that plate of home baked goodness is there.

And that's what every buyer needs to remember -- that there's a reason for everything. So when you pass through an open house, remember that the bright lights, the classical piano CD playing, the burbling fountain in the front yard -- it's all there to put you in the proper homebuying mood.

"Real estate agents aren't trying to be deceptive, but they are selling," says Lerner, chuckling, "and part of the selling process is making the house appealing."

Geoff Williams is a frequent contributor to FrontDoor.com.

<< BACK: Open House Traps

More on FrontDoor:

• Open House Checklist
• Top 10 Red Flags for Homebuyers
• Buyer's Field Guide to the Open House
• Pricing and Home Value Guide
• City Guides
• Browse Homes for Sale