Hey Tricia,
I was in your neck of the woods closing my cottage in Guilford. It was beautiful and the trees are way ahead of ours in upstate NY. Driving through the Berkshires was amazing.
As far as open houses go, the season is slowing. I hold them fairly regularly, but that really is for the benefit of the owner (new construction, no one to displace). I rarely get more than a few groups and even then, they are almost always just looking, already have a house. I've done them on a long weekend and found most people stay away.
Jo

Just to report that here in Minnesota there have been TONS of Open Houses over the last three weekends. My house went on the market two weeks ago, and my realtor plans to have an open house each Sunday. I had 15 parties through last Sunday -- which is a really good number, given the slow market. I spent the two hours of my open house going to others' open houses.

I noticed the drop off here a couple months ago. The RE section of the paper was HUGE last spring and things fizzled out over the summer. Still have high numbers, I guess people just figure it's gonna take a miracle for their house to sell now, not a newspaper ad! I drive down certain streets and there are no signs, despite many houses for sale in the neighborhood.

My wife and I went to an open house tour that one of the real estate office was putting on. There were a couple of dozen houses in the tour.

We went to the ones that we were interested in. What really surprised me was that the open houses were not well attended. Usually we were the only ones in the house, except for the realtor.

We talked to a couple of realtors late in the day and they said that only 3 or 4 couples showed up.

So I guess the open houses are showing the downturn in the market too.

Julie,

Great observation! Thanks.

Maybe, it's the sellers who are giving up & not the REAs?

Lots of media coverage the past six weeks & all of it apocalyptic. That, combined with the very real tightening of credit that may affect a seller's ability to purchase the new home they have/had their eye's on could be the reason for the slowing Open Houses.

This may be a sign of that capitulation I've been looking for indicating we're getting close to a bottom?

I'd sure appreciate anybody else noticing changes to report in...

/tricia

I've read repeatedly that it's regional. When I was looking in the DC market back when it was getting "hot" (2003-2004) I only saw a couple of open houses advertised, and when I attended a couple, I saw very few names on the sign-in sheets.

Yes, I know about attendance at open houses. Agents tell me they are poorly attended here as well. But, they were still conducting them right up until two weekends ago. Now, nada...kaput...fini...

Also noticed something very unusual in Newport, RI yesterday. After we'd had our picnic we drove through the Mansion district. We counted 11 Sotherby's signs in about a 10 block area. That's very unusual. These are mega-expensive homes. Often generationally owned by old New England money. They don't change hands frequently. When we got home, I checked Sotherby's Newport website & of the eleven I'd written down...found only one noted. So, they are "quietly" for sale, I guess?

Anybody from the Newport area care to chime in on the mass exodus from "Mansions Are Us"?

Oh, for those not on the east coast...I'm not refering to McMansion-type houses. These are 1880-1920 'summer cottages' built by the likes of Rockefeller & Astor (those are not for sale though!).

/tricia

What I've seen recently (and I mean since about Oct 1) in my area is that a lot of for sale signs are disappearing, and I don't believe it is due to sales occurring. I think sellers are giving up and taking their houses off the market. I suppose I am going to have ever more tenants for neighbors soon.

I just finished a meeting with my realtor to discuss marketing our home. As soon as it's officially listed he's going to do an Open House. I gather it's as much to allow the neighbors to come looky-loo and then tell their friends about the house as it is to garner general interest from actual buyers. The neighbors will receive their own invitations with a preview time for them (maybe they'll leave the color copies in the box then? lol).

I still get the MLS updates in my email for the zip codes I'm targeting. I don't see a whole lot new coming on, but I see a lot of drastic price reductions going on these days. When once I'd receive an update with only one or two listings, I'm getting daily updates of price cuts on 5-10! It's all doom and gloom here. People are saying the bottom isn't predicted until 2009 in Phx now. I just pray my buyer (investor) isn't reading the same stuff and gets scared out of closing this month. At the same time, I'm glad my sellers were motivated enough to negociate a nice low price so they could get out now before it's worse!

mfbenson, I think you are right. As the real estate contracts run out, people are just taking them off the market.

That is what we are going to do when our contract runs out in 5 weeks.

Pretty soon all that will be availabe to buy will be repoes. The problem is a lot of the repoes are fixen uppers. I believe that most people would rather buy a house that is ready to move into though.

catfishsam,

Don't think you're right about soon being only foreclosures available. Builders still have lots of new inventory to move...something like 8 months worth.

Also, it's not true that all foreclosures are DIY fantasies. I've got lots of foreclosure experience & I would peg those that were demolished at no more than 20%, maybe a tad less.

I'm sorry you've been unable to sell. You're in a really tough market (southeast Colorado). Right now, you've got a fatalistic attitude. And, I guess I don't blame you.

Wishing you fair winds & safe harbor in whatever lies ahead...

/tricia

I have a friend who works for Century21. Sunday she had an open house, and one person, other than myself showed up.

She had another one two weeks ago, and not even one person came by.

I suggested she find out when the Chargers are playing, either a home game, or a televised game. Besides, Sunday has always been about staying home and watching the games and having a relaxing day. Geting a guy off the couch is almost impossible, or maybe it's just SD.

Around here, open houses aren't numerous on three day weekends or holiday weekends, as many people have other things planned.

Patty-cakes...

Oh, please forgive me. I can't help myself.

GO PATRIOTS! GO BRADY!

/tricia (rofl)

A friend who lives in North-Central NJ has her house for sale. She has had 2 open houses in the past 3 weeks with 15 and 12 people attending, respectively. Another friend is a realtor in central NJ and she hosted an open house this past weekend. About 15 people attended. The market here is very slow, but the open houses seem to be well attended! Unfortunately the open houses have not generated any offers.

Agents often do open houses to get buyers (especially newer agents/ part timers) Some agents do open houses to make sellers happy. Some agents do one open house the first week to get the neighbors, house stalkers, the rush through in hopes of an offer, price and condition comments, and to save the sellers the hassle of showing it 20 times the first week (I'm in this group) and Some agents NEVER do open houses.

I think it depends on your market. Possible explanations-- a drop in the # of agents, ads get expensive and agents with higher # of listings have to spread themselves and $ thinner, fewer new agents= less open houses for the purpose of picking up buyers, statistically speaking open houses aren't as likely to sell homes as other actions, the Red Sox playing post season, Patriots are hot!, the holidays are coming, how many open houses are agents going to do where no one shows or 20 people show but no offers, seller has told agent if it doesn't sell this month they are pulling it, seller is tired of cleaning house every week only to have no one show at the open house....

Right now what is hot is agent open houses/ broker caravans and they are giving away $$$ to get agents to go. Our office does one every Tuesday and draws for $500 cash and several gift certificates.

Our realtor's office does agent caravans. We're having our first one on the 17th. We have two realtors from two different offices and I don't know when the caravan will be from the other office. They do them according to area on a weekly basis. I kind of wish ours was closer to when we listed, but hopefully this will generate some action.