As a real estate agent, you work hard to help your clients prepare their homes for sale. In some cases, this means repairs and renovations, but sometimes, it’s even smaller things that make the most difference. Here’s a list of top buyer turnoffs to share with your clients. Avoiding the items on this list can make for more successful home tours:
1. Visible Personal Grooming Supplies
From toothpaste and soap to lotion and shampoos, toiletries are just a fact of life. Everyone uses them, and your clients may think nothing of leaving them on their sinks and countertops. However, this is one of the things that turns buyers off. Buyers want to envision the properties they tour as theirs and imagine what it will be like to live in them. Looking at someone else’s toiletries just reminds them that others have owned and lived in a home first. And if there’s such evidence as smears of toothpaste and lipstick, caked on soap or spilled aftershave, that just makes matters worse.
2. The Commode
Potential buyers want to imagine themselves living in the home they are touring and forget about all of the things the current owners might have done in the property. If the toilet seat is up, this detracts from their pleasant view of the property, and if the toilet appears to be dirty, buyers probably won’t want to hang around in the bathroom long enough to get a good look at it.
3. Pets and Their Supplies
Not every buyer will be an animal lover, some might have pet allergies, and even those who do love pets might not enjoy them on home tours. As such, it’s generally best to ask clients to take their dogs outside or keep their cats out of sight or at least out of contact with potential buyers. It’s also a good idea to move pet supplies and equipment so that they are out of sight during tours. In addition, pet odor eliminators and stain removers may help buyers fully focus on a property rather than its furry residents.
4. Dirty Dishes
Sellers get busy just like everyone else, and as such, may need to leave dirty dishes in the sink, on the stove or on countertops for a bit. However, it is critical that they wash and dry dishes and put them away neatly in cabinets before buyers arrive. No buyer wants to be confronted with leftover bits of spaghetti and caked-on egg when trying to evaluate a home’s potential.
5. Crowded Counters
Having too much on counters and other surfaces can prove a detriment during home tours. All those appliances and storage containers that make life easier for the homeowner–from blenders and coffee makers to cereal containers and bread boxes–can also make counter space appear much smaller. Clear, clean counters look much more attractive.
6. Kids’ Stuff
Toys, baby supplies and sports equipment get in the way during home tours and can contribute to an overall cluttered appearance. Sellers may do well to put toys in toy chests, store sporting equipment and put baby supplies neatly on shelves and in drawers and cabinets. This is especially important when it come to items like baby bottles and breast pumps.
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