How NOT to Sell Your House: 15 Mistakes That Scare Off Buyers

Do you want your house to sit on the market for months without a single offer? Do you dream of every viewing ending in an awkward “we’ll think about it”? Then you’re in luck, because today we’re going to tell you exactly how not to sell your house.

It sounds like a joke, but these are the 15 most common mistakes that thousands of homeowners make every day. Take note of what NOT to do if you want to close a sale quickly and for the best price.

Picture the scene. A young couple, full of hope for their future, walk into a house viewing… and the first thing they see is a wall covered in someone else’s wedding photos. In that moment, the illusion shatters. From then on, they don’t picture their future home; instead, they feel like they’re intruding on someone else’s life. That’s why, in home staging, one of the most important pieces of advice we can give is to depersonalise the space.

So it’s time to pack away your photos and holiday souvenirs, tuck away the various appliances cluttering the kitchen worktop, and hide the shampoos and soaps in the bathroom. And yes, that includes your kids’ artwork stuck to the fridge with magnets. Don’t worry, you’ll soon be in your new home, where you can proudly display it all over again!

Nothing screams visual clutter like a tangle of cables behind every appliance. These days, cables are simply part of life, but that doesn’t mean we want to see them. In fact, visible cables can make an otherwise spotless, well-arranged house look untidy.

Luckily, there are plenty of low-cost fixes to help improve that first impression. Fit an adhesive cable trunking strip behind the TV, and tuck extension leads away behind furniture. Invest in a cable organiser box, you’re bound to get plenty of use out of it in your new home too! And if you’re not using a charger, pop it in a drawer. Honestly, it’s not rocket science!

Ever noticed how most property listings use phrases like “bright living spaces” or “lots of natural light”? There must be a reason for that. The truth is, people associate natural light with space and value, while a dark room can come across as small and neglected.

Dark curtains have their uses (especially in buildings without shutters), but they’re not your ally when it comes to selling your home. Swap them for light-coloured or sheer curtains, ideally floor-to-ceiling. If that’s not an option, the best bet is to remove them altogether, or at the very least make sure they’re always fully open before the photo shoot and every viewing. Make the most of all the natural light you can get!

We’ve said it once, we’ll say it again. Light. Is. Everything. And no matter how beautiful and sheer your curtains are, if the glass behind them is grimy, it won’t count for much.

One of the first steps in any home staging job is a deep clean, and windows are the most important part. A spotless window lets through a completely different kind of light compared with one covered in rain marks or grime. Arm yourself with three microfibre cloths and a spray bottle of water and white vinegar. The first cloth removes the dust. The second spreads the vinegar mixture. And the third dries and buffs to a shine. Then get out your sunglasses, you’re going to need them!

At 27 minutos Home Staging, we like to say that a small investment today can turn into a big pay-off tomorrow. And when it comes to small investments, few things offer better returns than a couple of tins of paint. Walls showing their age with chips, small damp patches, hairline cracks, give off a sense of neglect that’s hard to ignore.

Freshly painted walls in a bright colour, on the other hand, act as a blank canvas, helping buyers picture their own style in the space.

Fill in the small imperfections with filler and sand thoroughly for an even surface. Wipe away the dust and apply two coats following the manufacturer’s instructions (bear in mind that covering darker colours may need a coat of primer, or extra coats). It’s a job well worth doing. And remember, a few tins of paint will always work out cheaper than a price cut during final negotiations.

After all, you’re not selling your furniture. And there’s no reason for the buyer to even notice it. Besides, you’re going to buy new furniture when you move anyway… right?

If only it were that simple. But buyers are human, and humans notice flaws. They act like a magnet for the eye, distracting from what you actually want them to be looking at: the house. If your furniture is old or damaged, it tells a story of neglect. And however untrue that might be, buyers will start imagining there might be other things falling apart too. That’s when trust starts to slip away.

So it’s time to tighten screws, fix chipped edges, and swap out handles. If a piece is beyond saving, it’s better to just remove it. You can always work with a home staging service that hires out furniture for any missing pieces. Don’t let buyers fixate on details that chip away at your home’s value. When it comes to furniture, small fixes can make a big difference.

One of the most effective techniques we use in home staging is dressing a property with artificial plants. It’s a touch that brings life, calm, and warmth to any space. But… there’s always a “but”…

Not all plants are created equal. Some cost a small fortune and look like they’ve sprung straight from the earth. Then there are the classic bargain-bin varieties, little more than a green plastic stick with a few badly glued-on leaves. You don’t need to spend a fortune, but a modest investment (roughly €30-100, depending on size) can get you the effect you’re after, without drawing attention for all the wrong reasons.

(Mind you, even plants worth over €1,000 look sad when they’re covered in dust. Give them a shower occasionally!)

Picture a prospective buyer viewing your house. Everything’s tidy, everything is in its place. But something’s missing. Nothing invites them to stay. And they start to feel like they’ve wandered into a furniture showroom rather than a home.

Depersonalising doesn’t mean stripping all the life out of a house. Buyers need to feel that they could live comfortably there, that they could picture themselves at home. And believe it or not, soft furnishings are what turn a house into a home. A few cushions on the sofa, a wool throw over the armchair. Even in summer, natural textures like a jute rug or muslin curtains help create a relaxed, comfortable feel. And let’s not forget, plush towels in the bathroom give a sense of luxury that your old ones (let’s be honest, they’ve seen better days) simply can’t match.

The good news is that soft furnishings don’t have to cost a fortune. A few well-chosen touches can be the difference between a cold property and a warm, welcoming home.

Okay, calm down, take a breath. Don’t overdo it! It’s great that you want to put these home staging tips into practice, but there’s no need to get carried away.

Burying a sofa under so many cushions that you have to shift them one by one just to sit down and watch a film isn’t appealing. Nor is not being able to find a way into bed because you can’t get past the mountain of pillows. You want to avoid the impression that you’re overcompensating, or hiding something. When it comes to cushions, less is more.

As a general rule (always depending on the size of your furniture), four or five cushions are usually plenty for a two or three-seater sofa. And two or three cushions in front of the pillows on a double bed look inviting without being overwhelming. If you wouldn’t be happy living with that many cushions day to day, neither will the buyer.

Ever sat through a team video call where everyone’s trying to make their point at once, and nobody can follow what’s actually going on? Mixing decorative styles has much the same effect. Each piece might be lovely and interesting on its own, but put them all together and it stops making sense. It just becomes confusing.

Now, that doesn’t mean you need to buy the entire living room from the same catalogue! That brings its own problems, and ends up looking more like a show home than an actual home you want to live in. What you’re after is a common thread that ties the styles together. A simple colour palette, or repeating a particular material (wood, for example), can be exactly the touch needed to make the room feel intentional rather than thrown together.

Another hugely popular search term on property websites: outdoor space. But get things mixed up: People are searching for a terrace or balcony, not an outdoor storage unit. Sure, it’s the perfect spot to stash that bike you never use, but not even the most talented photographer alive can make that look appealing.

Now picture a clean outdoor space instead: free of washing lines, boxes and tools, with a small table and chair for enjoying your morning coffee. That could well be the cover photo that convinces a buyer to book a viewing.

So clear away anything that isn’t decorative, give the floor and railings a good clean, and add a well-kept live plant (or a good-quality artificial one, no judgement!). And a little table and chairs, however tight the space, show that it’s a part of the house meant to be used and enjoyed. It genuinely adds value.

We can’t say it enough: there’s never a second chance to make a first impression. You walk past it every day, so you’ve probably stopped noticing that the doormat’s worn out or the porch light’s gone. But if this were a first date, a neglected entrance would be like turning up without a shower, in muddy shoes. And then you expect a second date?

In a block of flats, you can’t control the whole communal stairwell, but you can control your own front door. Make sure the light fitting is clean (and working), clear away any clutter (shoes left lying around, that pile of post on the little table by the door), wipe down the wall and door (a magic eraser works wonders), and swap out that sad old doormat.

Really want to impress? Another good-quality artificial plant. Think of it as the bunch of flowers you’d bring on a first date.

Nobody wants to hear that their house smells. Besides, it smells fine to you, doesn’t it? Sure, but have you considered olfactory adaptation? We said what now? Yes, really, your brain gets used to the smells around you, which means that even if your house reeked, you’d be the last person to notice.

Add to that the fact that smell is closely tied to emotion, and a bad odour during a viewing (whether it’s smoke, pets, damp, or just a stuffy room) can trigger a sense of rejection that’s hard to shake off.

Don’t just try to mask bad smells (still whiffs of something unpleasant, just with a floral spray layered on top). The best approach is to air out the house before every viewing. Pay particular attention to soft furnishings, which hold on to smells the most. And check for, and remove, any source of the problem, whether that’s the kitchen extractor filters, the bin, or the laundry basket. Once you’ve dealt with the root cause, then (and only then), a subtle scent like vanilla, citrus, or even coffee can finish things off nicely. At the end of the day, you want buyers to remember your house for how it made them feel, not for how it smelled.

Little Max is the love of your life, quite possibly the greatest pet who’s ever lived. We don’t doubt it for a second. But there are some very strange people out there who might not see him as the little angel he truly is. Some people, honestly!

We’re sorry to say it, but however wonderful your dog or cat is with people, they’re not exactly your best ally when it comes to hosting viewings with prospective buyers. Some people are afraid of animals, others have allergies so bad their eyes water too much to see anything. And even among people who love animals, your pet can be a distraction from what they’ve actually come to see: your house.

So take little Max out for a walk, or leave him with a family member. Tidy away his bed, bowls, toys and (if Max happens to be of the feline persuasion) the litter tray. When it comes to selling your home, it’s best if your fur baby doesn’t try to help.

If you really want your house to never sell, here’s the easiest way to do it: do everything above just once, for the photos, and never bother again. Yes, some properties do sell after the very first viewing (particularly with home staging!). But typically, you’ll have several viewings before you get an offer. Bit by bit, the shoes pile up by the door again, the dishes stack up in the sink, and that stuffy smell creeps back in. The solution isn’t moving into a hotel until the house sells (tempting as that might sound sometimes). All it takes is a quick once-over before you open the door:

• Air out the house
• Clear the clutter (every worktop should be clear, and yes, that includes the draining board)
• Dust
• Open the curtains and blinds
• Cushions in place
• Air freshener sorted
• Furry friend out of the house

Fifteen minutes before each viewing can make the difference between a house that “sells” and one that disappoints because it doesn’t live up to the photos you worked so hard on.

So, there you have it. Now you know exactly how not to sell your house. Easy, right? All joking aside, none of these 15 points requires a big investment, just consistency and attention to detail. And that effort translates directly into a faster sale, at the best possible price.