However, according to John Owsnett, Principal of Chambers Fleming Professionals Padstow, while attention to detail may make your house sell faster and add dollars to its price, spending a lot of money getting your home ready to sell may be a waste.
He said buyers don’t always want to pay for improvements that are not to their taste and potential sales may be lost.
“On the other hand there are still a lot of simple things you can do to make your house welcoming and attractive,” John said.
“Bear in mind that appeal is not just visual, other senses like hearing and smell all contribute to a purchaser’s evaluation of a property.”
John said sensory stimuli such as noise and smell can be powerful emotional triggers and buyers could react negatively to features that are not even fixtures of the home.
He suggest smokers or dog owners could burn essential oils or use room deodorisers.
“Unpleasant or alien odours probably have a more negative effect than any other single attribute. Conversely, inviting smells like freshly brewing coffee or hot baked cakes have a positive impact,” he said.
“Loud or extraneous noises are a distraction at best and could even turn a buyer against the property.
“While you won’t want to change the carpet just because it may not appeal to everyone, exuberant dogs or loud music are inexpensive to keep to a minimum. Even if your buyers are dog lovers, getting involved in a canine rough and tumble may distract them from the real purpose of their visit.”
John said that most purchasers had a checklist of criteria they used to evaluate properties on a rational and critical level.
“Yet they often end up making a decision based on emotion and not according to how the features match up to those on their list,” he said.
Not just looks but sounds, smell sell
MOST home sellers realise that good presentation will improve the appeal of their homes, with some even prepared to spend up big in the quest for the prestigious top dollars.
