Sacramento Real Estate Blog

Okay, the potential home buyers have been walking through the home. Your Realtor® has warned you about the price and you’ve decided there is too much competition out there to push your luck. After all, just the other day, another foreclosed property has popped up for sale in your neighborhood. You wait much longer and the your concern is that your home is going to lose value as well. So you price the home under what you think it’s worth. Everything’s ready. And here come some potential home buyers. Do you drive them away by what you do?

Ooh, that Smell! Can’t you Smell that Smell?

After living in a home for a long time, some homeowners don’t even notice the smells in the home. But that doesn’t mean the home buyer doesn’t. When a person enters an unfamiliar setting, I believe that their senses are heightened and they are usually hyper-aware of things like smells. This is even more true if the home has been closed up for a while. Whether you are aware of it or not, remember that all houses have smells. The idea is to make yours have a better smell that invites people in, rather than makes them run for the car holding their noses.

Culprit #1: That lovely Persian cat
Yes, we all love our pets, but if at all possible, move the cat out of the home when you put the house on the market. If that seems too drastic, at least change the litter box daily and try to stash it away from public view. Get a room freshener in the area the litter box sits, so that its smells are quashed. There’s nothing worse than the smell of cat urine to home buyers and don’t think they won’t notice! More likely that they won’t notice anything but the cat’s… er… doings. And the brand new cabinets, the granite counters, the fresh paint - none of that will matter.

Culprit #2: The Dog!
And before anyone names me a cat-hater, (I own 2 cats and a dog, by the way) let me also say that man’s best friend can be a problem too. If your dog is used to laying on the couch and the bed, please be sure to vaccuum every single day your home is on the market. I know it seems unfair, but there are a lot of people out there who don’t like animals in their home and they will be bothered by the smell. Sure, he rescued your child from a traffic accident last year, he also still needs a bath before people arrive. Better yet, take the dog for a walk when home buyers arrive to look at the house. That way, he won’t distract them by jumping up and down or barking either.

Culprit #3: Dirty Dishes
There will be days (weekends, mostly) in my home when dishes pile up in the kitchen sink. Really, the dishwasher is just a few inches away from the sink, but sometimes it seems like miles. But my home is not on the market. And you can be assured those are cleaned up and put away before guests arrive. So dirty dishes in the sink are a strong no-no. Apart from the fact that they are visually unappealing, they also smell if left too long. Get rid of them. Wash dishes as soon as you finish eating if you’re selling your home. Yes, even if it is just one. Don’t pile them up and wait for a full load. And don’t think hiding them unwashed in the dishwasher is a good idea, either. Homebuyers do open appliances to see if the insides, believe me!

Culprit #4: the Garbage
Okay, this one should be obvious, but perhaps not. Get the garbage out of the home every single day, sometimes twice a day, especially if you like seafood or chicken. Or if you have a baby, like I do, who wears diapers. There’s nothing worse than a potential home buyer wanting to hunt down the source of a bad smell. And yes, on the surface of it, it might not seem like a big deal. It’s only garbage - of course you’re not going to leave it behind when you move for them to take care of, but we’re talking of first impressions and in my experience, home buyers know in the first five to ten seconds if they like the house or not. Those five seconds are hard to get back once they’ve been ruined with smells.

Other Random Culprits
Yes, there are more. Many more. Cigarette smells, unclean bathrooms, mold under the sink, random unknown blobs of dirt on the floor, old beer containers, unidentified spots on the carpet, fertilizer in the house plants, dirty shoes, old laundry, smelly socks, stinky undershirts, food in the sink, rotting flowers in a vase, the list goes on.

Yes, we’re a dirty species. But when our homes are on the market, we must give every pretense of smelling good. Remember you’re selling the home devoid if your selves and that’s how it must appear to every potential home buyer, or you’ve just ruined a home sale!