Gaithersburg Home Sellers: Don't Mask Those Odors!

I was showing a Gaithersburg home the other day and was overwhelmed with some exotic scent the moment I set foot in the home.  It was truly nauseating and was having the opposite effect on visitors (at least my group) than what the sellers intended.  These particular sellers had a large dog and I’m sure they were trying to cover the dog scent with those deodorizers.  Read on for why that’s a terrible idea.

Deodorizing Doesn’t Mean Masking an Odor in your Gaithersburg Home

If you have odors in your home, you’re not going to take care of them by just spraying or adding the plug-in room deodorizers.  Here's an article for ideas on how to remove the odors: http://cleanmyspace.com/the-truth-about-air-fresheners/ from your Gaithersburg home.

This article: http://www.grandparents.com/health-and-wellbeing/health/are-air-fresheners-bad-for-you  explains why you might want to stay away from any type of room deodorizers.  The absolute best solution is to get the offending area clean and open windows (weather permitting).  They end the article by saying that the best smell is no smell.  I tend to agree.

Gaithersburg home sellers who believe that they need to “add” to the sales effort by plugging in room deodorizers may be causing many more problems than they think.  A question to ask yourself if you’re selling a Gaithersburg home is: why are you using deodorizers if you don't have odors in your home?

And Everything is Moving Along Toward Settlement....

Think of this scenario: Your Gaithersburg home is staged and showing beautifully.  You’ve just come on the market.  You own a rather large dog who, although adorable and considered another member of your family, is somewhat stinky.  Ok, really stinky.  You decide that the best way to tackle that stinky dog odor is to put a few deodorizer plug-ins in your home.  Problem solved.

Mr. and Mrs. Buyer tour your home and fall in love.  Mrs. Buyer is going to have her first baby in a few months.  She wants to be settled in to their new Gaithersburg home well before the baby is born.  They write an offer, everything goes as scheduled and the day of settlement arrives.  Many buyers want to do their final walk through of the home on the same day of settlement (that’s another blog post for me at some point!).

And Now You Have Very Unhappy Buyers....

Uh-oh.  Buyers show up at the settlement table and they’re not happy with the Sellers.  Now that the home is vacant and they can smell Mr. Stinky Dog all over the home it's a problem.  This situation won’t be a lawsuit but I can almost guarantee that there’s going to be funds withheld from your Seller proceeds.  No seller likes that.  Buyer and Seller need to agree on how much money should be withheld (another problem).  The money then goes in to an escrow account for the work it will take to remove the odors.

Lawsuits are rare in real estate because they're so costly.  And Buyers normally don't want to sue (thank God).  However, it may be the only recourse for a buyer after settlement.  If the Sellers didn't remove the deodorizers while packing, sooner or later they'll empty while the Buyers are in the home and that's when the problems start.

Moral to the story?  Don't use them!  I ask to have them removed whether I'm working with Sellers or Buyers.