10 Ways to Push Home Buyers Away

So you hooked the bait and have potential buyers on their way to your house for a showing! This all may sound exciting, but are you ready? Are you aware of the top 10 ways you can push a potential home buyer right back where they came from? Mistakes can be made left and right when selling a home. Here are the top 10 ways to turn off a potential home buyer.

1. Poor curb appeal: You don’t want to turn off the buyer before they even enter your home. Make sure your home has all the curb appeal it can handle before you show it off. Mowing the lawn, fixing doors, and pulling weeds cost little to no money if you are short on budget. Paint and landscaping further your curb appeal potential.
2. Odors: Odor is probably one of the biggest turn offs that will make a potential buyer run. Pets, cigarette smoke, and an un-ventilated home are the biggest odor makers. Have a close friend or relative stop by to give you an honest opinion on the smell of your home. Removing carpet, washing drapes, wiping down walls, and removing scented furniture will help eliminate odor from the home.
3. Pets: Having dogs, cats, or even birds in your home during a showing can frighten or irritate viewers. Leaving them with family/friends is the best option.
4. Dark Rooms: Dimly lit rooms turn off potential home buyers (plus it makes your room appear smaller than it is). Open up the space by replacing light fixtures, installing additional lighting fixtures, removing heavy drapes, painting room with colors that reflect light, and removing items outside the home that may cause blocked light.
5. Wallpaper: It’s not that home buyers don’t like wallpaper; they just don’t like your wallpaper. Wallpaper is personal and provides a decorative touch by the seller. Since you want your buyer to be able to picture themselves living in your home, neutral colored paint should instead be used. (Note: Don’t paint over wallpaper. Strip it off and paint for a clean pallet).
6. Bugs: Any insect that should not be in the house should not be in the house! If you have a roach or spider problem, consider getting your house tented by a professional exterminator. On a side note, check around the exterior of the home for bee hives and other various spider nests to have them eliminated prior to showing.
7. Sellers who don’t leave: A seller should not hang around during the showing. It often times makes views uncomfortable and awkward if the seller is wandering around. If you’re selling by owner, make sure to give the potential buyers plenty of space.
8. Dirty gutters: Gutters outside of the home with plants growing in them make a house look un-kept. Cleaning out the gutter is quick and easy.
9. Damp Basements: A damp basement is a red flag of a leaky foundation. This is not always the case. Clogged drains, lack of gutter drains outside garage roofline, and downspouts aimed the wrong way can lead to damp basements.
10. Dirty bathrooms: Nobody likes to walk into a dirty bathroom, especially of a home they are looking to purchase. Scrub them down, paint them, buy a new shower curtain/rugs, towels, and even toilets if necessary.

Now that you know what not to do, get wise and hire an agent that understands your needs and wants you to succeed in your home selling endeavors.