Light, Color, Sounds and Smells

APPEAL TO THE SENSES

When selling your home, the atmosphere you create is very important. The prospective home buyer needs to feel relaxed and at ease to imagine themselves living in your home. Below are tips for adding that special touch and creating the right atmosphere for your home.

•Light

Let the light in! Brightening up a house can work wonders for its size and charm. It’s proven that people react more favorably to property shown under bright light than dark. After Location, good light is the one thing every buyer wants in a home. The following steps should help keep your room as bright as possible.

Clean dirty windows and keep them clean.

Replace burned out light bulbs with higher wattage light bulbs.

Update Lampshades, if necessary.

Cut the bushes outside to let in the sunshine.

Use mirrors to magnify the feeling of light and space.

Open drapes and blinds and turn on all lights prior to showing.

•Color

A fundamental rule when selling your house is to keep colors neutral and light.

White, beige and gray are popular exterior colors. Make sure you select a color that coordinates well with existing surfaces like roof color, brick or stone. If you choose to paint your house white, you can use a darker paint color for the trim and accents like the color gray, taupe or black. Many paint stores have exterior paint color combinations to reflect current market trends.

Use light/neutral/earth tone wall colors to help buyers visualize themselves permanently living in your home.

Avoid highly patterned wallpaper whenever possible.

Try to limit bright colors to accents like fresh flowers, towels, area rugs and accent pillows.

 

•Sounds

Many studies prove the senses have a strong effect on our state of being. Audio relaxation and aroma therapy are serious techniques used to create a pleasant state of being, and are extremely effective in mood elevation.

Subtle Music is Key

This is not a rock concert! The key to nice music in the home is volume. You want the volume as faint as possible. The music should go almost unnoticed. The goal is to relax and create a pleasant experience for the prospective home buyer.

Make sure to have soothing music playing in the main rooms of your home. Set up inconspicuous speakers in the main entry way, living room, kitchen, etc.

Sound effects such as water falling or a tropical Rain Forest would be great in the bedrooms and master bathroom. Again, a good rule is low volume.

Music Selection

Light Piano music is great for the home. The piano is generally liked by all people, and can have very relaxing effects on the brain.

Easy listening combines piano along with many other instruments to produce a unique and relaxing sound. Please, no Elevator music! You don’t want the potential home buyer to feel like they’re in a drug store.

Be careful, some Jazz is very noisy! However, light Jazz is often relaxing and pleasant and can add elegance to your home.

There are many soundtracks that have wonderful atmospheric sounds. Ocean sounds, Rain Forest sounds, and sound effects from nature, are just a few examples of relaxing sounds.

Other Sounds

Avoid barking dogs and noisy children, if possible.

Avoid sounds of work like vacuums, dishwashers and lawn mowers.

Make sure there are no sounds of mechanical problems like banging pipes or faulty appliances.

•Smells

Another way to relax and entice the prospective buyer is to make sure your house smells great.

The smell of cleanliness is important to the selling environment of your house. Beyond actually cleaning, lemon oil or lemon wax can create a lasting scent of freshness.

Don't count out nature! Many flowers, plants, small trees and shrubs create wonderful natural fragrances.

Use delicate fragrance like linen sprays, potpourri, scented candles or scented plug-ins. This will add an enjoyable sensory atmosphere.

For a real heart-warming touch, place a dish of vanilla in a warm oven to create the aroma of fresh baked cookies or bread.

Sweeten the refrigerator with a box of baking soda.

Make sure to choose appropriate fragrances for the different rooms in your house. Stay away from strong fragrance and mixing fragrances. Choose subtle spice or cinnamon for the kitchen, and elegant floral or freesia type scents for the bathrooms.

Smells to avoid include strong pet odors, tobacco, cooking and oil or gas.