7 Proven Ways to Make Buyers Hate Your Home

Home Buyer Turnoffs

Are you selling a home? Did you know that even though home buyers are all looking for something different in a home, the majority of them will turn around and walk back out of your door if they notice one or more of these 7 problems.

1. Poor Curb Appeal

You must grab a buyer's interest from the curb and hold on to it, if you want to sell the home for top dollar. Home buyers often refuse to go into a house with an unkempt yard, sagging doors or peeling paint. You can't afford to paint? Okay, but get that yard in tip-top shape and grab a screwdriver to fix those doors. Some people never clean their gutters, and it always makes buyers wonder what else hasn't been maintained.

2. Dogs that Meet You in the Driveway or at the Door

Dogs frighten some people and irritate others. You'll have a much better response from showings if you control your pets, dogs, cats, or pet ant eater.

You plan to put them in a bedroom or garage and then ask people not to open the door to that area? This is a bad idea. Would you seriously consider buying a house you can't inspect? Of course you wouldn't. As a seller don't give a buyer the opportunity to cross your home off of their list.

Remove pets during showings if possible. If you can't, contain them in a crate for their own safety and to show respect for the potential buyers, take them to a park or a friend's house.

3. House Odors

Odors are number one on the home selling no-no list. And to be specific, odors from cigarette smoke and pets are at the top of the list, with mildew a close third.

If you smoke indoors, the house smells like cigarettes. If you have pets, the house might smell bad, even if you don't notice it. Ask someone who doesn't live with you to test your air, and don't get angry when they tell you the truth.

Eliminate the odors so that you can present potential buyers with a clean, fresh atmosphere, not a house that's full of perfumes to cover up the odors.

4. Kitchens and Bathrooms that are Dingy

A dirty or dingy kitchen and bathrooms are an instant turnoff. Scrub them, paint them, buy a new shower curtain, rugs and towels, do what it takes to make them shine. If you're serious about selling the home, the extra work will definitely pay off.

5. Dark Dimly Lit Rooms

Dark homes are a turnoff to most home buyers, so brighten them up:

• Replace dim light fixtures

• Install additional light fixtures

• Install a skylight

• Remove dark or heavy drapes to let the light in through the windows

• Repaint some rooms with lighter colors that reflect light

• Trim tree limbs that shadow the house

Dirty windows and screens are another buyer turnoff. Clean them inside and out to bring in more light.

6. Wild Wall Paint or Busy Wallpaper

Busy wallpaper in every room turns off most buyers, and even people who love wallpaper rarely like what you've chosen. It's a personal decorative touch that they want to select themselves.

Your trying to appeal to as many people as possible when you're selling a home, so take a hard look at your room's colors and wallpaper and decide if it should be removed and replaced or re-painted. Never paint over wallpaper, because it will be obvious that you did, and buyers know that this makes removing it for them even harder.

7. Sellers Who Insist on Hanging Around

That's right, you should leave the house during showings. Home buyers feel awkward about opening closet doors and lingering for a really good look or asking too many questions about the house if the seller is home. These are all good buying signs that help buyers visualize themselves living in the home that you don't want to impede. If you have a Realtor, make arrangements to go to the mall or take the kids to a park for several hours.

If you are a for sale by owner, give them some space, don't hover, be available for questions but don't follow potential buyers from room to room. If you are going it alone, remember to put away small collectables, valuables or jewelry before inviting strangers into your home.

Final Words of Wisdom

Most of these 7 problem areas are home selling issues that can be corrected without spending a lot of money. It is wise to do it before you put the house on the market. If your home gets a reputation among real estate agents as that house that smells, that house with the huge furry dog or the house where the owner won't leave people alone, it will be too late. Your house will not be on their list to show potential buyers in the future.

For more ideas and tips to sell your home. Stay tuned to the "Diamond Dwellings Real Estate Blog" or gives us a call.

813-653-1241

Dave Tipton, Broker- Diamond Dwellings Realty- Florida