How important ^really^ are finishing touches, flower and baking bread?

[Wallissimpson]

Just watching, " Selling Houses" and he's talking about a house being spotless, fresh flowers, dressing a room etc etc.

How important is this really? Every house we've bought ( and we've bought a lot )we haven't given a fig about superficial appearance. Our criteria are always, price, location, size, room layout. Whether the vendors have a table laid out in the dining room never registers.

So, are we odd?

i am like you. my house was like something from the seventies when we viewed it.
manky furniture, manky old carpets, hideous kitchen... and really, really, really ugly from the outside

but we bought it because we are capable of looking past superficial details (well, ok it's still ugly but it was a good price for the size of house)

It only adds anything for me if more importnant features as mentioned before, are ticked.

I don't generally go for pristine houses. But what I do go for is houses which don't seem lived in, e.g. a granny house where the old person has died, or one which is empty as the owners have moved out already - none of that "dressing the room" stuff for me. I guess I can imagine myself in there. What I hate most is ones where you can't look round properly because there are people sitting watching East Enders, or teenagers sprawling on their beds.

The first place we bought had been a student flat and the students had moved out, though there was still furniture there. Our house seemed fairly normal, though there were a few odd unfinished-looking things. When we bought it we found out the owners were getting divorced, so maybe they weren't actually living here.

But maybe I'm weird.

I think its a load of old baloney, imvho. As long as a place is not health hazard-dirty and I can see the floor, I can see the potential and I'm sure a lot of others are like this. If you're not a 'doer-upper' type of person, then yes, it is enticing to walk into a lovely, fragrant home but baking bread and fresh flowers is way OTT, imo.

I tend to think finishing touches are completely over-rated too. Nicely clean, yes, if you're trying to make the most of the place you are selling but fresh coffee smell and displays of exclusive gym membership cards . It all seems a bit try-hard and I often wonder where they dreg the people up on these shows who say that they can't envisage a huge bedroom with a double bed in it because it currently only has a single one or the curtains have put them off - I'm going to have to again.

I tend to buy wrecks though so the mankier the better.

Finishing touches are for really thick people, with absolutely zero imagination

It puts me off if anything especially in modern houses if they look like the Next Directory too I am out of there.

Smacks of desperation imo. Decluttering so that floors and worksurfaces are as clear as possible is useful, decluttering so that cupboards only seem to contain one pair of shoes each for a family of four, two skirts, two pairs of trousers and a display of jumpers that look like a Benneton shop circa 1984 just tells me that the house probably doesn't contain enough storage for normal living.

Definitely wouldnt go for the baking bread thing - the mess! But I always have lots of flowers and would notice if a house didn't have any.

Totally agree that there shouldn't be people milling around in the house when you're viewing it.

I think all that matters is that it is reasonably tidy and that the owners AREN'T in.

yes, what is all that about removing the second sofa etc?

There are six of us, I NEED to see that we can all fit in!

Of course flowers etc aren't the most important thing when viewing a house, however if you can see that someone has taken care of the presentation then I'd assume that they may also have taken care of the house in general over the years and may be keen to sell. Someone who hasn't made any effort would make me think they're not bothered either way about selling and may have neglected roofing, damp etc
I kinda think of it like a job interview - the cv may look great on paper but if the candidate dresses sloppy and doesn't come across well then you may not want to hire them, or pay them as much as if they'd made an effort!

YOu see I know developers that have done a shite job and then put twiggs in a vase in the window and expect top dollar for the house because they assume the general public won't look beyond the decor and most don't.

Dont know....

This house (we are moving in 2 weeks) was awful when we moved in (very dated previous owners did nothing in the 4 years they were here)

However, when we have been looking houses recently to buy I have been very put off by the following;
Strong smell of cigarette smoke in every room
Dirty carpets
Dirty walls
Dated/unmatching bathroom suites
Dirty kitchens
Pants on the floor
Dirty plates and cups

So, I would say dont go overboard but clean up!!!!

Becarooo thats how our house was when we viewed it

It didn't bother me because i was going to remove any carpets and paint anyway. Better to buy cheap and then change some things.

I remember a lady who had aromatherapy candles lighting in every room of her over-priced house and a smug face expression. I wanted to tell her 'do i look so stupid?'

Majority of people are stupid and flowers impress them

you only have to see the nutters people sell to on Mumsnet