Posted by: Karim Ali
Coffee with Karim
What Buyers Notice First, and What they Ignore Completely
One of the more interesting parts of working with buyers is quietly observing what they react to the moment they walk into a home. Sellers often assume buyers are scanning for upgrades, finishes, or whether the kitchen looks like something from Pinterest. In reality, the first comments tend to be much simpler and much more instinctive.
Buyers form an opinion within the first minute or two, and that opinion shapes everything else they notice afterward.
If you are preparing to sell, it helps to understand what actually registers immediately, and what tends to matter far less than most homeowners believe.
The First Filter Is Almost Always Smell
This is the one sellers underestimate the most.
If a home smells musty, stale, damp, or overly perfumed, buyers notice it right away. They’ll usually say it within the first 10 seconds, and you can see it in their body language. They pause. They look around, in hunt of the cause. The showing gets derailed!
Basements in particular deserve attention here. Running a dehumidifier consistently and airing the home out before showings does far more than lighting candles or plugging in artificial scents. In fact, heavy fragrances tend to raise suspicion rather than confidence. A neutral, clean, almost invisible smell is what you are aiming for.
You can have great finishes and a strong layout, but if the home smells off, buyers mentally discount it before they even reach the kitchen. Also, kill pet smells if you can. Some buyers don’t mind it, but others will eliminate an otherwise perfect home if they can’t stay in it long enough to fall in love.
Light and the Overall Feeling of Space
After smell, the next comments are almost always about brightness and how the home feels.
Natural light plays a significant role in whether a property feels open, welcoming, and comfortable. Dark rooms feel smaller, even if the square footage says otherwise. Ceiling height contributes to this more than buyers consciously realize. They may not walk in and say, “The ceilings are low,” but they will say, “It feels tight,” or “It feels a bit dark.”
In townhomes especially, brightness and sightlines can make the difference between a space feeling functional versus confined.
That initial emotional read on light and openness tends to stick throughout the showing. If natural light’s non-existent, you’ll need to compensate with effective artificial lighting. Spend your time and money here.
Cleanliness and Visible Care
Buyers notice signs of upkeep very quickly. Scuffed baseboards, dings in walls, worn carpet, or visible dust in corners all send subtle signals about how a home has been maintained.
This is less about perfection and more about perception. Buyers interpret visible wear as a broader indicator of care. If the small, easy-to-fix items have not been addressed, they naturally wonder what larger items might have been overlooked as well.
On the other hand, a home that feels clean, tidy, and clearly maintained earns goodwill, even if many finishes are dated.
What Sellers Tend to Over-Fixate On
Where sellers often spend time and energy is on things that rarely carry as much weight as they expect.
The exact age of hardware, whether every light fixture is perfectly modern, or whether the backsplash reflects the latest trend tends to matter far less than cleanliness and overall feel. Buyers are generally more forgiving of older finishes if the home feels solid and well looked after.
Minor cosmetic updates can certainly help, but they do not compensate for poor lighting, musty air, or visible maintenance issues.
Detached vs Condo: What Changes
Buyer behaviour shifts depending on the property type.
In detached homes, buyers often focus on land, privacy, storage, and noise. They sometimes walk straight to the back window to assess the yard and sightlines. Garage size and basement storage come up regularly. If the rear yard feels exposed or the road noise carries inside, it affects perception immediately.
In condos, the showing often begins before the unit itself. Buyers pay attention to the lobby, hallways, and overall cleanliness of common areas. They consider amenities, location convenience, and how the unit’s finishes compare to the monthly fees. Building smell and maintenance are part of the first impression, whether explicitly discussed or not.
Buyer Profile Matters
Different buyers react differently.
First-time buyers are often more sensitive to visible wear and smell. Carpet stains, scuffs, or obvious maintenance gaps can feel overwhelming to them, particularly if they are not especially handy or experienced with renovations.
Move-up buyers tend to focus more on layout, bedroom sizes, and storage. They still care about condition, but flow and functionality often dominate their comments.
Investors are typically more numbers-driven, yet even they respond to how clean and well maintained a property appears, especially when thinking about attracting quality tenants.
In Ottawa specifically, many buyers work in government or other professional roles. They tend to be analytical and risk-aware. They may be capable of taking on improvements, but they often prefer to limit the effort required. If a home feels like too much work up front, it can quietly fall down their list.
Mechanical Sensitivities
Items like older electrical panels, poly-b plumbing, or aging mechanical systems do not always trigger immediate emotional reactions during a showing, but buyers do account for them.
Often these details become discussion points later in the process, either as conditions or as part of price negotiation. They are rarely ignored entirely, even if they are not mentioned in the first ninety seconds.
The Consistent Pattern
After walking through many showings across Ottawa, one pattern stands out.
Buyers react emotionally first and justify logically afterward. If the home smells fresh, feels bright, and appears well cared for, they begin looking for reasons it could work. If it does not, they begin looking for reasons to move on – or they outright ask me if we can leave early.
Understanding that sequence can make the difference between a showing that builds momentum and one that quietly loses it before it really begins.
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