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Damp tops list of biggest housebuyer turn-offs

Your Money
Written By:
Your Money
Posted:
Updated:
19/02/2014

Damp stains and poor maintenance have topped the list of house-hunters’ biggest turn-offs, a new study has revealed.

Some 70% of people survyed said they would not buy a property which had damp patches or stained walls or ceilings, while 63% would avoid homes which were in a poor state of repair.

Bad housekeeping can also help to break a sale – putting off more would-be buyers than outdated décor or small rooms, according to the study by Gocompare.com.

More than half (56%) said that they would be turned off by a smelly house, while dirty rooms (37%), general untidiness (16%), overgrown gardens (16%) and cluttered room (15%) were also key influences in deciding whether to buy a particular property or not.

Rank 20 Top Property turn-offs %
1 Damp patches, stained walls and ceilings 70
2 Property in poor state of repair e.g. rotten windows 63
3 No garden 57
4 Bad smells, including odours from pets, cigarette smoke, damp and food 56
5 No parking 56
6 Poor natural light, dark rooms 54
7 Unfinished building work 54
8 Small rooms 51
9 Small kitchen 44
10 Bad DIY 43
11 Dirty house 37
12 Stone cladding, render or pebble dash on outside walls 31
13 Outdated bathroom 25
14 Outdated kitchen 25
15 Artex or textured ceilings 18
16 Plastic windows 18
17 Overgrown garden 16
18 General untidiness 16
19 Cluttered rooms 15
20 Dated or over the top décor 14

 

Ben Wilson, from Gocompare.com home insurance, said: “Buying a home is one of the biggest financial commitments many of us will make and most potential buyers will want to think that the property they are buying has been looked after by its current owners.

“Overgrown gardens, grubby, cluttered rooms can be tell-tale signs that the property has been unloved and essential maintenance and repairs have been ignored. For example, stained walls and ceilings or rooms with a mildew smell could warning signs of a possible damp problem which might be costly to remedy – or they might simply be a result of blocked gutters or downpipes which are quick, easy and inexpensive to clear.

“So, one of the cheapest and most simple ways to help ensure a successful sale is to make sure that before you put your home on the market, it is clean, fresh smelling and tidy.”


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