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When selling your home in the summer - keep the AC on!

Reblogger
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Cornerstone Business Group Inc 0225086119

 

Coral has some very important advice for us during these warmer months.  Enjoy, and please direct any comments to her.  She will really appreciate it!!

 

Original content by Coral Gundlach

While previewing some homes yesterday, I noticed something in one of them that is possibly a big obstacle to the home selling.   It was not a blazing hot Washington DC day, but in the high 80s.  And when I walked in, I was hit with even more hot, stale, pent up air.   The house was vacant, and clearly the sellers nor the agent are checking in on it.   I can only imagine how unpleasant it would be if it were in the hihg 90s or 100s as it often is here in the summer.   Sellers, don't underestimate the psychology of a buyer and how important it is to make your home warm and inviting when they walk in the door!  Not only was I blown over with hot stale air, I also had to step over a week's worth of mail.

So even though the room looked more like this:  pretty empty room with parquet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It FELT like this:

nasty bedroom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not only will buyers get a psychological boost from walking into a cool home on a hot day (cold waters in the fridge won't hurt either!), they will also benefit from clearer air and fewer smells.

When it's humid outside and you don't have your AC on, smells come out of the woodwork.  Their basement smelled musty and that smell could have been mitigated by air circulation.

Also, when moisture is allowed to sit, mold develops.   I sold a house to a buyer last year that needed mold remediation because the seller was trying to save a few bucks on their utility bills and that still, humid air grew mold.  

And lastly, a vacant home with  no AC on in the summer screams "abandoned house!"  It does not give one the welcoming feeling of home.  It just looks and feels like no one cares anymore.

So spend the extra bucks on the AC - you will more than make up for it in the value of your house!

 

Coral Gundlach, CRS

Realtor serving Arlington, Fairfax and Loudoun Counties in Virginia

www.coralgundlach.com

 

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Comments (4)

Rachel Dunn
Keller Williams Realty® - Round Rock, TX
Productivity Coach & Realtor®

I agree! And  when you do go in a vacant house that has the A/C set in summer or the heat in winter, leave the thermostat with the same setting when you leave as when you arrived. Considering that your are seldom in a house more than a few minutes, adjusting the thermostat will rarely make a difference anyway. Oh well, I'll get off my soapbox now. Thanks for a great post!

Jul 10, 2011 05:41 AM
Anna "Banana" Kruchten
HomeSmart Real Estate - Phoenix, AZ
602-380-4886

I walked into a home yesterday that was pleasantly cool - of which we weren't expecting.  So important, espcially in hotter areas of the country.

Jul 10, 2011 08:28 AM
Roberta Kayne
Dublin & Central Ohio Homes - Dublin, OH
CRS, ABR, SFR, RRS, Realtor, Re/Max Affiliates

Mike - important point!  I showed 10 homes yesterday in the heat, and only 1 didn't have the a/c on, and it did make the house really uncomfortable.  Of course, we expect no a/c in foreclosures, but I'm sure you were looking at occupied homes.

Also, thanks so much for leaving a comment on my blog.  Unfortunately, the photo wasn't showing and then blog got deleted so I had to re-enter it -- and of course all of the comments were deleted too.  Anyways, I re-entered it and I think, if AR is working correctly now, the picture should be up with the poem.  http://activerain.com/blogsview/2393400/an-angel-brushed-her-wings-to-my-face

Roberta Kayne, Re/Max Affiliates, Dublin, Ohio

Jul 10, 2011 08:40 AM
Mike Cooper, Broker VA,WV
Cornerstone Business Group Inc - Winchester, VA
Your Neighborhood Real Estate Sales Pro

Rachel, Anna, and Roberta it really does make the house feel different when you walk in and it's cool or warm depending on the season.  I've had a couple recent REOs require that the power stay on and the heat or cooling be set at a specific temperature.  I think they're starting to think the same thing.  Thanks for dropping by, and please visit Coral's page to say hello.  Thanks!!

Jul 10, 2011 10:40 AM