OK … confession time. What smelly things have you done to try to sell your home?
New research is telling us that the wrong smell in a house can cost home sellers a sale. Dr Avery Gilbert, a psychologist who studies human responses to scents, says tobacco and cat urine are the odours most difficult to cover up and warns the bad impression they leave can have buyers walking out the door.
Dr. Avery Gilbert is a smell scientist.
He has conducted research on human odor perception in academic laboratories and in the R&D divisions of multinational perfume companies. Along the way he’s taught scores of audiences about the science of smell. – Avery Gilbert
But what about good scents? Have you ever tried baking bread or biscuits just before a home open? Apparently that might make buyers feel as though the house belongs to someone else (which of course, it does) and they’re less likely to see themselves living there.
Dr Avery reckons the best option is a clean, fresh floral scent. I guess that having a couple of bunches of fresh flowers in your house would make it visually appealing too.
“If you have a highly pleasant smell, people get into a better mood as they are exposed to it. And bad smells will put people in a bad mood,” Dr Gilbert said.
“People may not be as attracted, even if it is a fine property.”
Dr Avery, whose research involved a company that manufactures air freshener, partnered with Air Wick to complete the research into home odour created an index of the 51 most common household scents, from cooking to pets and body odour.
He said finding a way to remove bad odours should be paramount when selling your home. – News.com.au
What are the little tips and tricks you’ve used for home opens? Brewed coffee? Air freshener? Fresh bread? Let me know what you’ve tried.
Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading The Sweet Smell of Real Estate Success? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.