Hello, nosy neighbors and looky-loos!

Open houses bring annoyances, but sometimes a buyer walks in

Realtor Dana Mastovsky waits for visitors at an open house in a Natick split-level. (Josh Reynolds / Globe Photo)

Last Sunday, Jodi and Ken Bring scrubbed the kitchen floor, made the beds and stowed their daughter's train set to prepare their Natick split-level for a home seller's weekend ritual - the open house.

Expecting their second child this month, the couple is purchasing a larger house in a nearby neighborhood and see an open house as the best way to show off their 2,300-square-foot place, which features a refinished basement, a large master bedroom suite, and a huge, tree-lined backyard.

"We are so convinced our house is worth buying," Jodi Bring said. "We just want people to come see it." For years, the open house has been a given, perhaps because of its simple premise: A seller puts his house on the market, cleans and de-clutters, then opens to visitors for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon. On a good day, a parade of nosy neighbors, looky-loos, and potential buyers stop by to check it out, and an offer or two might roll in afterwards.

Not everyone is convinced of the open house's value. Tidying for an open house takes time and also forces the seller out of his home for the afternoon. In a soft market, open houses sometimes generate little interest, leaving an agent alone with his BlackBerry. With home shoppers able to screen properties online with virtual tours and photo galleries, some agents are considering whether open houses are a waste of time.

Still, buyers tend to be enthusiastic about open houses, because they can check out a home on a whim, rather than having to schedule an appointment with a broker. They can also organize an afternoon of looking around staggered open house times. Alex Coon, Massachusetts market manager for online real estate broker Redfin Corp., likes that open houses are held within a generally agreed upon time.

"Since houses aren't cars, there's not a lot you can just show up to and take a test drive," he said. But, "I know that I can set aside Sunday afternoons and look at property if I want."

Open houses also allow those buyers who view brokers as unnecessary to check out a house without being tied down to one particular broker. Magda Fookson, who wants to upgrade to a larger home in Natick, toured four homes Sunday, including the Brings' open house, with her husband and children. The open house is one of the main tools she'll use to find her next home.

"I don't feel like I need to attach myself to somebody to make it happen," said Fookson, who said she knows exactly what she is looking for and would likely consult a broker only when she's ready to make an offer.

But open houses can also be a drag. Sellers worry about getting robbed and are instructed to hide valuables like jewelry and electronics, as well as medications. Others worry that realtors' main objective is to network with potential clients and that the open house will result in nothing more than a parade of neighbors curious to see the inside of a house they've long admired, rather than serious buyers.

"I know people who almost treat it like sport, try to see how many places they can see in one day," said Coon, of Redfin. These days, brokers are divided on the open house's usefulness. Kristen McKenna Blanchet, a broker associate for ReMax Prestige in Tewksbury, said open houses are held simply to appease sellers.

"In my five years in real estate, I've never sold a listing at an open house," she said. "Serious buyers make an appointment. They're not waiting until a Sunday open house to see what happens." She said sellers these days are more receptive to her suggestion to forgo the open house, especially once she holds one that isn't well attended.

"It's another day that the seller has to have the house prepared," she said. "I really just think it wastes their time." Instead, she offers a marketing plan that includes advertisements in local newspapers and websites, as well as online video tours of the property, so that buyers have a good idea what the house looks like before setting foot in it.

Barbara Spears, who recently sold her South End Realty Group to Keller Williams Realty, said open houses sometimes don't drum up any business.

"I've been at a lot of lonesome open houses in my day," she said, describing how she would pace the floor and check the newspaper to make sure the open house announcement made it in. "Sometimes it's just like that. No one shows up." Other agents said the decision whether to hold an open house depends on the property. Open houses in condo buildings, for example, tend to be less useful because units are so similar. And many brokers said there's a limit to how many open houses should be held for one property. Ill-attended open houses can be demoralizing, too.

Dana Mastovsky an agent with ERA Key Realty Services in Framingham who listed the Brings' home, said when she holds an open house that doesn't attract buyers, "I try not to do another one for a long time, unless the clients ask for it."

However, sellers usually insist that their brokers hold at least a handful of open houses, in part because of the chance someone will fall in love with the house during a walk through. Open houses also provide the opportunity to show many people the house at one time, rather than scheduling showings throughout the week. Marilyn Jarvis, president of 1,500-member North Shore Association of Realtors and an agent with ReMax Advantage Real Estate in Beverly, said she holds open houses for "100 percent" of her listings. She said even an open house that is unattended is worthwhile. "You've got to listen to the message," Jarvis said. "The price can always be adjusted. When you hit that magic number, the floodgates open."

Christian Dowling, a Winchester builder who buys and fixes up homes, has held more than 40 open houses for a property he put on the market last May.

"If you've redone everything, you want to be able to showcase the home," he said. "It's only two hours. You sit there, bring a book, put up a bunch of signs, usually you get 10 to 20 people.

"It's that one time that someone comes in and makes me an offer," he said. "Then it's worth it."