When a home is vacant, sellers try to minimize carrying costs of the house as much as possible and one way they do this is by not providing any utilities to the house. I was painfully reminded of this earlier today during a showing. Upon entering a vacant home I realized that there was no escaping the painful cold, in fact, the thermostat reading was 36 degrees INSIDE!!!
When a home is frigid inside, the last thing a buyer can do is imagine themselves living in it. All they want to do is run back to the warm car. Aside from how uncomfortable a COLD house can feel, it can also be costly. If you choose to have the utilities off you run the risk of pipes freezing and bursting if the home is not winterized. Also, if a furnace is left off for a long time it can lock up and not function correctly once it is turned on. Either way can be very costly - certainly more costly than paying about $50 a month to keep your systems running and your showings more comfortable. The best thing to do is have a programmable thermostat that you can set to the low sixties during the day and 55 at night.
I know it's hard to think about summer right now, but this also applies to air conditioning. I don't what's worse - a home that feels like a refrigerator or a sauna. Either way, providing a little comfort can save you alot of money and time in the long run.
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