Hello Realtors,

I wanted to discuss selling a smokers house,

And what you should do when you get the listing, first off I am also a Realtor, writing this post, so here we go, I am surprised to find so many realtors not disclosing to the public that the home, they have just listed is a smokers home, this has to be disclosed, now if your thinking you don’t have to, because it is not part of the selling contract to tick a box that says this is a smokers house or previous owner was a smoker, or there is no law that’s states you should,
well think again.

Just because it is not part of the normal disclosure process, this is not a reason to not disclose this fact, first off if you lie to the new owners and they do not smoke and purchase a home from you, and later find out that you did not disclose the fact that this was a smokers home, well you could be getting sued, you the realtor, seller, and your broker, could end up in court, due to non disclosure.

I am amazed at how many Realtors do not disclose

A person that has never smoked, can walk into a house and smell cigarettes in 5 seconds, I am one of them, so even if you hide the smell, we can smell it, even if you open the window and put febreze all over the house, it will not help, we can smell it, and the people that come over and ask you, is this a smokers house, and you say no, well you just made yourself look like a liar, that does not make you look professional at all, and all for what, a commission.

How you sell a home that has been smoked in, smokers house

When you take the listing, you explain to the seller, we have to disclose to the public, that you have smoked in this house and agree not to cover anything up, or you all could end up in court, also many homes that are smokers homes, well sell for much less then a non smokers home, so you need to be upfront and tell the seller this.,

If you feel that your seller does not want to disclose that to the public, that the home has been smoked in for years or what ever the case, then you should not take the listing period.

Many Agents will not sell a smokers home

I see many agents not taking listing that are a smokers home, reason is, they do not want to lie, so they pass, but some do try, to take the listing and then find out, how hard it is to sell a home that has been smoked in for over 20 years or even 1 year, so they give up and cancel listing most of the time.

How to cover up the smell from a smokers home

Many people think, to remove the smell of cigarettes smoke, is to paint the walls with primer, then use wall paint, change the carpet, and done, WRONG, WRONG, this will only hide the smell, it will come back, the cigarette tar and nicotine, goes everywhere, number one, it is in the ac ducts, and it can only be removed by, removing all ac ducts and unit, so as you can see this is a problem, you can hide it, but you can not remove it, you can remove some of the smell, but once a house has been smoked in, it has become a smokers house.

So how to remove smoke from cigarette tar and nicotine

I have seen many people purchase a home that was a smokers house, and remove all Sheetrock all ac ducts and unit, new paint,carpet, cabinets, all flooring and anything they think could hold cigarette tar and nicotine. One home owner I know, after she did all this work, she sold the house, because she said, I still could not get rid of the smoke smell, and disclose to new owners that it was a smokers house at one time and bought a new home. So there you have it, my thoughts on this mess.

Homes owners and Realtors

I know this post will reach both parties involved, sellers and Realtors, so please leave your comments from both sides, we must work together on selling a smokers home.

MLS will add Smokers home to contract soon

Yes the MLS is in talks about this now, since many lawsuits have been filed over this,

Leave your comments below. or contact us

Thank you

Guest Blogger.