Every article, video, and home-themed television show which deals with selling your Chester County PA home will contain oodles of information/suggestions/tips/hints/advice on how best to achieve your goal in a short period of clean housetime.  You already know that in a buyer’s market, potential purchasers can afford to be picky and that sometimes even a small “defect” can become a deal breaker, so you dutifully heed instructions to de-clutter, de-personalize, and de-emphasize anything that could be perceived as a negative.  You even bake cookies before an open house to provide a warm and welcoming atmosphere!

But….are you aware of the importance of eliminating, not just masking, all interior odors?  No, the answer is not to spray tropical-scented commercial products all around your Chester County PA home, for that is only a temporary fix and may even provoke an allergic reaction from a potential buyer.  There are, however, natural solutions to persistent smells of all types.  Making your house smell spring-fresh is a great way to invoke the buying mood this year.

Besides opening windows and letting fresh air flow freely throughout your Chester County PA home, there are many steps you can take to identify odor-prone areas and do away with the stench.  Read on:

  • Use fabric softener sheets in linen closets, vacuum bags, and pillowcases.
  • Take advantage of the fact that baking soda, unused coffee grounds, imitation vanilla, houseplants, tea tree oil, vinegar, cat litter, and a boiling of cinnamon and cloves absorb odors.
  • Understand that potential buyers will open drawers and closets, inspect the freezer and refrigerator, tour the basement, look carefully at bathroom and kitchen fixtures and appliances, and check out washers and dryers.
  • Treat your garbage disposal to rinds of citrus fruits every so often.
  • Fight the smell of tobacco smoke smell with gusto!   Place small bowls of pine-sol or baking soda in the affected areas to absorb the odor. Often a heavy duty cleaning and wall washing will be required to stop the odor once and for all.
  • Recognize the fact that erasing all pet odors is mandatory.  These are stubborn smells resulting from dander, bedding, and accidents, and they require diligence and sometimes even detective skills to find the source.  Click here for an effective (and eco-friendly) homemade urine stain and odor removal solution and procedure.

Rest assured that your fresh-smelling interior will appeal to potential buyers and hasten the sale of your Chester County PA home!