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Well I must say that house being lived in was horrid compared to some of the vacant homes we looked at. I have to say - I was not impressed. We were told these people were looking to buy a brand new house. I mean really, they can't keep this one clean. Again, I have to state when we opened the door - All I can see was clothes thrown everywhere. Not just placed, but thrown. There wasn't hardly anywhere to walk anyway, plus of course that smell. Whew....
I'm living in Kansas right now and Moving to Ohio in 2 weeks.
I went crazy when we put my last house up for sale. The people who bought it made comments on how clean it was - I have 2 little boys, so it was hard to keep it clean and decluttered...It was on the market less then 2 weeks and they were the first ones to walk in. I got all but 1000 of asking price.
I completely agree. The last group of homes I saw (I'm looking out-of-area, so it's usually a half dozen or so in one day) included several with knock-you-over fragrances. Maybe not coincidentally, all of them had a dog in residence; small dog, true, but still a dog. Having also seen several homes in which the canine odour was horrendous, the over-fragranced houses made me wonder if the entire purpose was simply a cover-up.
I'm allergic to both dogs and cats, and also extremely sensitive to any fragrance -- so much so, that I can't even have an unlit scented candle anywhere in my home. I must use fragrance-free cosmetics, soaps, laundry detergent, et cetera, and can never wear perfume or scented hair products. So when I go into a home that smells like the candle department at Linens'N'Things, I literally hold my breath as much as possible and also go through it VERY QUICKLY. The houses with dogs + heavy fragrance were the worst. I couldn't wait to get outside and gulp some lungfuls of fresh air!!
I don't remember much about those houses other than one or two things I didn't like, and the overpowering fragrance, because I was concentrating too much on getting OUT of there.
I'm the same way regarding scents and fragrances. I think many people become de-sensitized to smells and odors and don't notice how stuffy and offensive certain air fresheners, and candles are to other people when used steadily in a home. They also forget to open their windows to allow air circulation and to get rid of pet and cooking smells. It's funny when you mentioned you don't remember much about the home, except for the smell. I remember one home that wasn't too bad, but that scented smell was what stood out in my mind. I felt negative whenever I thought about that house, so I wrote it off.
Last edited by desertgirl; 03-27-2007 at 03:16 PM..
you know, you could tell the realtor about your problems with "smelly" products and maybe he could tell the owner not to light any candles..... my agent says it to light candles as it gives the room a beautiful effect... if he told me someone was allergic or didn't like candles i would never light them!!
I'm afraid I'm extremely sensitive to odors. The perfumes and air fresheners normal people find pleasant, I have a visceral and unpleasant reaction to. So I figure I'm not a bad person to use as a test case in this sort of situation. Usually If I think it doesn't smell, ...it's probably ok and doesn't smell to others.
So - I agree in the strongest way with the advice above about keeping things clean, and (for instance) putting fruit peel down the garbage disposal, removing the trash, opening the windows, avoiding scented candles, perfumes etc.
Now, I realize that this is all very personal. People are different.
I also realize that it's not easy to get a house to have absolutely no odor at all, and it's not always the right temperature to open the windows.
Having said that, if you're tempted to use some sort of air freshener, try this:
Put sugar and cinnamon (and a few slices of apple if you have one lying around) in a piece of tin foil. Fold it all up and then try to make sure it won't "leak". Tinfoil pie plates work well for this too. Now turn the oven on about 250f. Bake it for a few minutes and then turn it off.
Few of us find this offensive.
Refrigerated cookie dough works too, but then you have the cookies to dispose of
I've been in some houses that were pig sties and the sad thing is the most recent worst case the house belonged TO THE REALTOR! Walked into a dungeon, no blinds or curtains open at all, coffee grinds all over the kitchen counters, dirty dishes in the sink and on the counter, no lights on whatsoever, kids rooms upstairs were a MESS. Best part, they insisted on an hours notice of showing the home. FOR WHAT!?!?!?!? To make a mess so that the house would not sell? This one has been on the market since the fall and the sign has the "reduced" magnet on it. DUH!
I've been in others that were STUNNING and even though they may have been on the main road in the neighborhood, smaller lot, etc they sold FAST! Most of the time for full price.
I agree, too much scent is not a good thing. I have indoor pets, 2 dogs and I still do NOT want to walk into a house be it my own or another and smell a dirty pet store. I'm somewhat anal about my house staying clean along w/ the dogs staying clean so our house does not smell like an overrun kennel. Then you can go in some and see one outdoor dog and smell it all over the house. Too many candles burning bothers me too. My youngest is an asthmatic and I can not burn candles for but just a few minutes and then I still have to be sensitive the the scents (they bother me too). I do NOT care for anything flowery, just a simple vanilla or even a light citrus is better than ones that flowery. Clean, that is the BEST smell. Get out the PineSol and Clorox and if I walk into a house that smells like that, ahhhhh. Nope, down here you can not always open windows to air the house out but everytime that I get the chance I do. The neutralizing air fresheners are the best. Turn on ceiling fans also to help move the air around so the house does not feel stuffy.
Here is a quick list that should be given to every homeowner that has a house on the market.
1. OPEN the blinds/curtains. Let the light shine in. Show off the view, etc.
2. Air the house of unpleasant scents. Use the neutralizing sprays and open windows for a bit before hand if possible. Run ceiling fans to move the air around so the house does not feel stuffy.
3. Wipe down kitchen and bathroom counters. Those Lysol or Clorox wipes are great for this. I keep a container of them under every bathroom sink just for quick cleans before company.
4. Clean the toilets w/ PineSol. The smell from this and from cleaning the counters will give a more pleasant "clean" smell than anything else you can do and faster. Too many scents are too much for a lot of people so don't over scent the house w/ candles. If you want to light candles for effect find ones that are unscented.
5. Set the thermostat to a pleasant setting. Don't make it frigid in the winter or too hot and stuffy in the summer. The prospective buyers need to feel "comfortable" in the house and if you keep it set too high/low it is only going to give them the prospective of thinking that the utility bills must be outragous for that house.
6. Pick up dirty clothes off the floor. I REALLY do not care to see all of the dirty undergarments strewn about the place. That just shows that you really don't care and probably have neglected many things on the house. Buy a clothes hamper for everyone and USE IT! Stick a freshen up thing on the lid. A good idea to use those freshen up scent things on the lid of the kitchen trashcan too (last nights dinner may not smell to pleasant by now).
7. Do put citrus rinds down your garbage disposal. This serves two purposes. 1. It helps sharpen the blades. 2. It helps clean odors out of the garbage disposal and puts off a nice scent. If you don't have a rind cut a 1/4 or 1/2 of a lemon, lime or orange and cut it up and use it. Every now and then put baking soda in the garbage disposal w/ white vinager.
8. Make the beds. How hard is that to do? It takes less than 1 minute to make a simple bed. Train your kids to do this and then as adults they won't have bad habits.
Just a few tidbits that can make a world of difference.
I agree: The kiss of death is a smoker's home, unless the buyer is planning to completely gut the inside (floors, walls, ductwork, everything)!
I'm happy to see so many other odour-sensitive people here ... most of the people I know are not, and look at me cross-eyed whenever I say I smell something that they don't.
None of the 'fragranced' houses I've seen so far had candles burning; I think they may have been using those plug-in air freshener things or something similar. It was PERVASIVE through the entire house.
When I look at the MLS photos I can often tell if the house has a resident dog or cat, and that does make me wary because if the house already has central air, then I would have to plan on replacing the entire system including ductwork: My allergies are THAT bad. Flooring would have to come up and be replaced, all walls and ceilings painted, and so forth. Often the kitchen photos will show pet dishes, or a pet bed in one of the rooms, as a clue. I've noticed that often the photos will show the dog, though only rarely have I seen a cat in a MLS photo (there were a couple in which the cat was sitting on a windowsill, though!) -- I think a cat prefers to make itself scarce when there is a stranger in the house, especially one that's going from room to room with a camera!
As a realtor who would like to have every house I list clean and fresh, but you have no idea how difficult it is to tactfully suggest to not so clean people to clean their home. We try. I think when people decide to sell, they are not prepared to change. They just think people will see through all the stuff' and bring offers. Only after no offers,do they begin to try to listen to their realtor.
I find it hilarious that I finally find a post to comment on and it's about smelly homes! But I am also a sensitive, non-smoker, non-pet owner/lover. I walked into a house last week that looked immaculate in the photos with new carpets-- only to walk in to an overwhelming and undeniably unattractive scent. We had no idea what it was and finally found the culprit in the living room... doggie bowls and a lit mango candle jar. The combination was nauseating and probably not as obvious to the seller. I do commend him for cleaning up the place nicely and leaving only two doggie bowls as hints there was a dog. However, this discovery just made me gasp-- to think of ALL THE CARPETS I WOULD NEED TO SHAMPOO OR REPLACE!!! Long story short, I crossed that house off the list.
luckyduck, how I do know what you mean..!! I saw one house in which the photos made it look like a setting from Architectural Digest, but the moment I walked in I was assaulted by the most appalling stench (no other word to describe it) of dog. I walked halfway across the living room, holding my breath, then turned to my agent and said "I'm sorry, I just can't..." and walked out. I couldn't even bear to walk through the rest of the house. I wouldn't have been able to afford stripping the interior down to the studs and floorboards!
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find pleasant, I have a visceral and unpleasant reaction to. So I figure I'm not a bad person to use as a test case in this sort of situation. Usually If I think it doesn't smell, ...it's probably ok and doesn't smell to others. 
Walked into a dungeon, no blinds or curtains open at all, coffee grinds all over the kitchen counters, dirty dishes in the sink and on the counter, no lights on whatsoever, kids rooms upstairs were a MESS. Best part, they insisted on an hours notice of showing the home. FOR WHAT!?!?!?!? 
To make a mess so that the house would not sell? This one has been on the market since the fall and the sign has the "reduced" magnet on it. DUH!
my first post!
