The return on investment of open houses has long been a debated topic among residential real estate agents.

Some seasoned professionals with a large referral base and repeat clientele opt out, while others are avid believers.

The National Association of Realtors’ 2010 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers indicates 45 percent of all buyers used open houses as a source in their home search process.

But for Stephanie Steele of Keller Williams Realty Inc.’s Lipsey/Shaner team, only about one in 10 of the group’s open houses are the actual catalyst for selling the house. Nonetheless, it’s still an effective marketing tool, she said, and she holds open houses at least once a month to generate interest.

“Generally speaking, you’re going to pick up buyers for other houses, not necessarily for that house,” Steele said. “I like open houses, they’re good, but they’re not the only source. I don’t think that you’re 100 percent going to sell the house just from doing one, but definitely picking up business is a plus.”

The minimum time requirement is about three hours, Steele said, including the actual two-hour period of the open house, plus putting up and taking down signage. Then there’s marketing expenses associated with advertising. But those costs pay off in the long haul, Steele said.

“To get three or four leads out of an open house, even if one only pans out, that’s definitely a return on your time,” she said. “It’s a very small investment because we already have the signs. We’ll put out balloons and cookies or whatever else, so that is a small cost, but if it’s to pick up one solid lead, absolutely.”

Sometimes those leads come in the form of other agents, said Jerry Chism, principal broker and owner of Dogwood Realty of Memphis LLC. He recently held a “broker’s champagne brunch” during a weekday morning to appeal to those who are usually tied up with clients on the weekends.

“If you can get agents to come look at your house, they may have a buyer,” Chism said. “There’s not too many people who do these broker open houses, but I wanted to invite the agents that are in that area, plus any listings that are in that area, I would find out who those agents are and send them an invitation so they know my house is not far from them.”

Chism, a 20-year veteran of residential and commercial real estate, holds open houses about once a quarter. The Internet has made open houses less critical than they used to be, he said, but they can still yield the right returns in the right market.

“It’s worth it in certain areas where the demand is high and the sales are good,” he said.

Meanwhile, Maureen Fraser of John Green & Co. Realtors has been religiously holding open houses since she began selling homes about five years ago.

“I wasn’t in the business when it was booming, so I’m used to having to work hard and it’s worked for me and my schedule,” Fraser said. “I feel guilty on Sundays if I’m not at an open house. It’s just part of my week.”

It’s so much a part of her routine that she capitalizes on other agents’ mixed feelings. On Father’s Day Sunday, Fraser held an open house in Germantown that was “non-stop.”

“I met a gentleman who was moving here, and I got a message from the relocation company that he had selected me to be his Realtor,” she said. “But that doesn’t happen all that often.”

And it’s not just the agents who are scoring leads. With the growing popularity of HGTV and shows such as “House Hunters,” Fraser has found that open houses may bring lookers, but they’re just that.

“A lot of people like to get decorating ideas with the newer homes,” Fraser said. “There are people that I see at several houses that that’s what they do on Sunday afternoons – go to open houses as a hobby. But I don’t get offended by it.”

Fraser looks at the whole experience as a networking and relationship-building process. If only one person shows up, she considers it a success.

“If anybody comes, that’s another contact person that I’ve met and they’ve met me, so I look at that as an opportunity to meet people,” Fraser said. “My business cards are there, so it’s good exposure.”