The pandemic killed the open house, but that tried and true real estate sales tactic is making a big comeback. It is one of few bright spots for buyers in a market that still overwhelmingly favors the sellers.

“A lot more agents are having public open houses as first showings, which is great, because it gives buyers a chance to get in the door and actually see properties before they go under contact,” said Realtor Tracey Mulvey of RE/MAX River’s Edge in Bristol.

When Covid arrived in the spring of 2020, open houses were one of the first things to change (along with the sweeping closure of schools and businesses worldwide). Since public spaces were considered scary and unsafe, the last thing anyone wanted was to invite the public into their homes.

The real estate market briefly fell into a lull in 2020, but it quickly regained speed, especially here in the East Bay. The pandemic gave rise to new tactics, like video tours, virtual tours, and gloved, masked private showings. The open house was left behind, an old-school tactic from another era.

Despite the gradual loosening of all things pandemic, the open house did not make a quick return. It has taken years for things to get back to “normal,” but a scan of last weekend’s open house listings shows how much they have changed.

Zillow listed open houses at 10 different Barrington homes, including some that were open both Saturday and Sunday. The same was true in East Providence, with 10 open houses scheduled. Bristol had five open houses. Warren had two, Portsmouth had 12, Middletown had five, Newport had seven, Tiverton had seven, and Westport had 11.

That adds up to nearly 70 open houses in the East Bay last weekend, a bonanza reminiscent of a pre-pandemic era, when buyers spent their days racing from home to home, experiencing the thrill of possibility.

Good for buyers and sellers

Mulvey believes the open house is a great tactic for sellers, and great news for buyers. “Buyers need these open houses,” she said. “They need the experience. They need the time to walk through and compare homes. It’s nice to see that they’re actually happening again.”

Because the market has been dominated by low inventory and fierce competition, many buyers have gone through horrible experiences — stretching their finances beyond what they can afford and still getting blown out of the water by competing offers; frantically submitting a bid at the asking price and losing out to someone willing to go 15% over-asking; seeing attractive new properties hit the market on Tuesday and go under contract on Thursday.

“As a buyers’ agent, I’m feeling the stress,” Mulvey said. “My buyers are stressed. And yes, the open house does create a sense or urgency, and competition, but it allows the buyers the opportunity to actually see the property.”

Mulvey advises all her sellers to hold public open houses, because it’s good for business (and good for buyers).

“Sometimes sellers immediately get an offer they feel they can’t refuse. Maybe it’s cash, maybe it’s over-asking. They accept the offer and shut it down immediately,” Mulvey said. She worries those sellers might be leaving money on the table.

“If you launch a property on a Monday, you have a showing immediately, and you don’t offer an opportunity to get through the first weekend, many buyers, especially out of state buyers who can’t get here because of their work schedules, don’t even have a chance to see it, and you’ve now missed out on that entire buyer pool.”

So bring back the open house.

“Let’s give buyers an opportunity,” Mulvey said. “Let’s not shut the door on them on a Thursday.”