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Seller Tip: Scent Matters

Reblogger Monique Combs
Real Estate Agent with Royal Shell Real Estate 3290764

Original content by Norma Toering Broker for Palos Verdes and Beach Cities BRE# 01147470

I spent part of last week showing property in Rancho Mirage, CA.  It was part work and part fun as my client is also a long term friend.  We looked at property, lunched, looked at more property, stopped for happy hour then went back to the condo we were staying at and eliminated prospective properties.  The second day followed the same routine.  We soon narrowed a list of thirty-two homes down to a short list of three.

My client is single, so all the fixer candidates were tossed aside without a second glance.  She is simplifying her life, not taking on a major remodeling project. Consequently, the kitchens and bathrooms were the first to receive in-depth scrutiny.  If they passed the "I can live with this" test we completed the property tour, if not, we locked up and left.

Location eliminated many lovely properties.  Peace and quite are high on her list.  If a few moment's repose on the patio revealed street noise we moved on.

Scent matters more than you may think, in fact, it may even cost a seller a sale.  If your home does not pass the buyer's sniff test you can be almost certain you will never receive a contract from them.  One vacant home reeked of musty odors--could that be mold or mildew?  Another home's air was heavy with the smell of years of tobacco smoke.  Yet another smelled of long gone pets.  Many homes failed my buyer's sniff test.

The fortunate three she selected as potential homes to make an offer on all shared one thing in common:  They were clean, upgraded and smelled fresh.  Not only does scent matter, it also sells.

Norma Toering & Team RE/MAX Palos Verdes Realty
(310) 493-8333 / Office Phone: (310) 831-0800

PalosVerdesLifestyle - Nominated by Relocation.com as one of the top ten Los Angeles area real estate blogs. Ranked by Technorati in the top 1% of all blogs. As seen in the Daily Breeze newspaper.

South Bay Los Angeles cities I sell real estate, property, houses and homes in: Palos Verdes Estates, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, San Pedro, Long Beach, Torrance, Lomita, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.


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TeamCHI - Complete Home Inspections, Inc.
Complete Home Inspections, Inc. - Brentwood, TN
Home Inspectons - Nashville, TN area - 615.661.029

That's for sure. I have been in some houses that were real stinkers...

Apr 03, 2010 11:41 PM
William True
True Sarasota Real Estate - Sarasota, FL
Sarasota Real Estate

I just had a buyer pass on a home because of heavy cat smell. Great Blog Monique, Happy Easter!

Apr 03, 2010 11:46 PM
Joshua Zargari
MJ Decorators Workshop LI staging and home decorating - Lynbrook, NY
MJ Decorators Workshop

Good post

Apr 03, 2010 11:51 PM
John Armstrong
Coldwell Banker Heart of America - Bloomington-Normal, IL

Every realtor should invest in one of those ozone cleaning machines. The work great. It's cleaned pet odor, cigerette odor and everything else I've treid in on.

Apr 03, 2010 11:56 PM
Dorie Dillard Austin TX
Coldwell Banker Realty ~ 512.750.6899 - Austin, TX
NW Austin ~ Canyon Creek and Spicewood/Balcones

Good morning Monique,

This is definitely a message worth re-blogging. Smells in a home can make or break a buyer making an offer! Happy Easter.

Apr 03, 2010 11:57 PM
Steve McCoole
Mortgage Alliance Group - San Diego, CA - NMLS#305667 - San Diego, CA

Houseatocis!  Will make even the warmest of buyers go cold.

Apr 04, 2010 12:15 AM
Don Spera
CR Property Group, LLC - East York, PA
Serving York and Adams County, PA

First impression is everything.  As soon as you walk in a home the odor can take over.  The two largest culprits are pets and smoking. 

  • Litter Boxes (heavy urine smell and not emptied routinely)
  • Dogs - Unclean and smelling of wetness
  • Bird Cages
  • Heavy smoking (so bad that people don't want to go any further and you see yellow stains on the ceiling and walls)
  • Dirty Laundry
  • Dirty dishes in sink smelling of grease

This is only a handful.  It is hard to be tactfully to a Seller, but if you give them enough negative feedback, it will eventually sink in.

 

Apr 04, 2010 02:05 AM