Selling your Northern Districts home – use your senses
Selling a home is all about evoking emotion. You want to convey to your potential buyers everything that makes your home welcoming and comfortable to live in. In summer, it’s all about creating a relaxed holiday vibe. One way to do this is to ensure you are appealing to your buyers’ senses.
If you’re putting your home on the market in the warmer months, you’ll have the lovely summer ambience of the Northern Districts to draw upon — the fresh scent of gum leaves and maybe an inviting swimming pool in your backyard. Here are some other ways to create a great sensory impression.
Scent
Smell is a powerful sense, and in an open home you can appeal to it in many ways. Lots of greenery, such as gum leaves, or some sweet-smelling flowers in a vase, will create a great impression. And remember to water the garden and open the windows to let in the plant smells.
But be subtle — heavy perfumes and scented candles can be off-putting. They may also make buyers suspect you are trying to cover something up, such as damp. And while a spotlessly clean house is essential, always use mildly scented cleaning products, not half a bottle of bleach.
It’s also vital to eliminate any unappealing smells. Sprinkle tea tree oil in drains, empty bins, remove all pets and their odours, clean upholstery and carpets if you can, and don’t cook anything too pungent the night before an open home, as the smell will linger. Putting the bins out the week of your open home is another essential task.
Taste
Some sellers may leave out fresh coffee and biscuits to encourage buyers to linger and feel more at home in the property during open homes. Baking a cake is another trick to create a warm, homey feeling, although you don’t want to overheat your house in summer!
Sound
If your home is close to a busy road, consider holding the open home in the evening after rush hour, or on a weekend morning. You want buyers to experience your home at its most peaceful when they first visit. They can always come back to see how the traffic affects it later on.
Soft music, such as jazz, and wind chimes in the garden will create a pleasing background sound without being overpowering. And if you have a water feature or fountain, be sure to turn it on.
Touch
Buyers will touch things as they move through the house, turning on taps, for example, or opening kitchen drawers. Ensure these are all working smoothly. Also, make your home appeal to tactile buyers with throw rugs on beds and couches, big cushions and soft floor rugs.
Buyers will also run their hands over surfaces, such as bathroom vanities and kitchen bench tops. Just before your open home, go through each room with a clean, damp towel and polish surfaces. This will create the impression of a well-cared for home, which is exactly what most buyers are looking for.
Sight
This is of course the most important sense and I have written before about how to get the most out of it though photo shoots, styling and open homes. In summer, think about bright colours, uplifting fresh flowers and maybe some cooling green indoor plants. This will all help to give an impression of relaxed summer living. If you have a pool, a few poolside chairs with soft cushions will look great. But remember to keep it fairly neutral and uncluttered so there is a feeling of space and calm.
Talk to me
As a local Northern Districts real estate agent and Thornleigh resident, I find it easy to talk to buyers about how lovely it is to live here. I will ensure your house creates the best possible impression through my attention to presentation and marketing. Please get in touch with me today if you are thinking of putting your Thornleigh, Pennant Hills, Normanhurst or Westleigh home on the market.
