{"id":10140,"date":"2019-03-28T19:30:38","date_gmt":"2019-03-29T02:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=10140"},"modified":"2026-04-06T06:24:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T13:24:59","slug":"open-house-questionnaire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/open-house-questionnaire\/","title":{"rendered":"Can I Be Honest? The Art of Crafting an Open House Questionnaire"},"content":{"rendered":"

When was the last time you heard a friend talk excitedly about filling out a customer service survey? Or a colleague who bragged about their street poll participation?<\/p>\n

Unless there was some kind of freebie involved, our guess is never. So, when it comes to attaching a questionnaire to your open house, it\u2019s natural if your gut instinct is to protest the idea.<\/p>\n

But when you host an open house<\/a>, you\u2019ll need to squeeze some productivity out of it from any angle you can. This can be a challenge when\u00a063% of agents don’t<\/strong>\u00a0always recommend open houses<\/a> in the first place.<\/p>\n

One indirect benefit of these events? The chance to collect honest feedback about your residence and how it shows\u2014and unless you\u2019ve got a bunch of gabby visitors, they\u2019ll be unlikely to express their opinions over coffee.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve outlined 8 great questions to include in your open house questionnaire (which your agent can send out via email after-the-fact or hand out at the event) and how to harness raw criticism to your advantage.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Source: (Lisa Fotios\/ Pexels)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Question #1: What are your first impressions of the property?<\/h2>\n

First impressions<\/a> last, and you\u2019ll want to know what immediately stands out to potential buyers when they step into your home. Hopefully, their initial reaction is positive, but if it\u2019s not, this feedback should be the first priority when it comes to making changes to your home.<\/p>\n

Small things like a worn doormat, old mailbox, or overgrown lawn<\/a> can knock off major first impression points. If visitors were less than impressed, focus on the features they found problematic. Maybe this means a fresh coat of paint to the front door<\/a>, a new window box<\/a> with plants, or deodorizing the house<\/a> from any noticeable smells.<\/p>\n

\u201c[One of my seller clients] had a dog, and the buyer didn\u2019t mention the pet but made a comment about the smell of the carpet in the living room,\u201d recalls Eddie Blanco<\/a>, a top-selling agent in Hialeah, Florida<\/a>. He encouraged his seller to strip out the carpet, and invest $1,500 into laminate flooring.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd boom, the house sold. She got that $1,500 back and then some.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swapping out the carpet on the property meant buyers were welcomed by fresh new flooring<\/a>, rather than reminders of the owner\u2019s pet friend (reminder: not everyone\u2019s a dog person!)<\/p>\n

Question #2: What did you like most about the property? What did you like least about it?<\/h2>\n

If you get feedback on what buyers love about your house, play up the features they gushed over.<\/p>\n

Did they comment on the airy, open concept kitchen? Consider adding more photos<\/a> of this space to your listing and use kitchen staging techniques<\/a> to make the heart of the home shine. What visitors love about your property might be different than what you enjoy, so getting a different point of view can help.<\/p>\n

The reverse goes for least enjoyed element of your property. Frequently, these things can\u2019t be easily changed, like the location of the home or the number of bathrooms, but even this feedback can be incorporated into improvements.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo look, if they’re saying the rooms are small, you\u2019ve got to ask a seller if they\u2019re willing to do a few things,\u201d Blanco says. If negative feedback revolves around the size of the rooms, you could:<\/p>\n