5 Ways to Scam Home Buyers: How Realtors Raise Prices on Old Homes

When preparing a house or apartment for sale, sellers strive to make their property as attractive as possible. However, some sellers use dishonest tricks to inflate the price. These tricks are explained. Lifehacker.

When selling a home, people naturally want to get as much money as possible. Therefore, before listing, owners often spend money on repairs and upgrades, and even hire home staging professionals to make the house or apartment look as appealing as possible. But not all sales methods are fair: some unscrupulous sellers use tricks to get you to overpay for their home. Here are a few things to look out for when viewing a home.

Sellers may try to hide the true age of household appliances

When purchasing a home, the condition and age of all equipment installed in it are important factors. Unscrupulous sellers may try to conceal the age of their equipment to avoid giving the buyer a discount or replacing outdated systems, such as a boiler or heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system.

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The seller can always claim they don't know when the equipment was installed. However, an experienced inspector can usually just look at the serial number of the appliance to determine its production date and roughly estimate its installation date.

That's why some sellers try to prevent this: they simply remove stickers or plates with serial numbers from appliances or scratch them to make them illegible. Sometimes they even try to change the installation date, if it's indicated on the device, by writing over it with a marker. If you can't easily find and read the serial numbers of your appliances, this should at least raise suspicion—and it's worth insisting on finding out their actual age.

Sellers may re-stick emblems of expensive brands on equipment

Most people aren't experts in kitchen appliances, but many know that there is a sort of hierarchy of brands, and some, like Viking, are considered expensive premium brands.

So, if you walk into your kitchen and see gleaming stainless steel appliances with Viking logos, you can be delighted to know you're getting a luxury kitchen. You might even be willing to pay a little more if the appliances are included in the price of the home.

Although this is often a ploy. You can buy logos of famous brands like Viking online, stick them on ordinary mid-range appliances (covering or removing the real logo), and hope that buyers don't know what real premium models look like. Of course, this won't work for someone who's knowledgeable about appliances or has used expensive models before. But for little money, it's an easy way to create the impression of an expensive kitchen.

There's an even more cunning and dishonest practice: sellers display new, expensive appliances at a home showing, then replace them with old, worn-out ones after the sale is completed, taking the good ones with them.

Sellers can use various techniques to make old equipment look new and expensive.

Appliances can significantly impact the overall impression of a kitchen and, consequently, the price of a home. A kitchen that looks new and recently renovated can significantly increase the value of a property. Therefore, some sellers who don't have the budget for a full renovation try to create the appearance of a new kitchen with cheap tricks.

Updating an old kitchen in this way isn't a problem in itself, as long as the seller is honest about it. The problem arises when they lead the buyer to believe the appliances are newer and better than they actually are.

Here are the most common tricks of sellers:

• Stainless steel imitation. People love the look of stainless steel, and many consider it a higher-end product than white or black. In fact, it's quite easy and inexpensive to apply a decorative film or vinyl coating to an appliance that makes it look like stainless steel. This can lead buyers to believe the appliance is new and expensive. Therefore, always check the serial numbers. If they are hidden or missing, be wary.
• Replacing grates, handles, and fittings. When combined with a stainless steel-look finish, replacing old grates or burners with new ones and installing metal handles instead of plastic ones can make an old stove look brand new. This upgrade isn't a problem in itself, as long as it's honestly communicated.
• A decorative dishwasher panel. One way to conceal the condition of an old dishwasher is to install a panel that matches the kitchen cabinets. This makes the appliance look built-in and expensive, and buyers may overlook its age and actual condition. Almost anyone with basic home improvement skills can install such a panel. Sometimes, it's even considered a nice improvement if you know what's behind it.

Sellers may make spot updates to hide more serious issues.

Before selling a home, almost all owners perform certain tasks: deep cleaning, freshening up the paint, and fixing minor issues. All of this is done shortly before listing to ensure the home looks well-maintained.

But sometimes such "repairs" merely conceal a chronic problem. The seller may temporarily repair the damage and cover up its traces, hoping the buyer won't notice.

An isolated renovation could be a sign of this: for example, painting just one wall in a room, replacing a single section of roof shingles, or installing new carpet in one bedroom while the carpet in the other rooms is old. Even if such work is done carefully, it could indicate that something has happened in that area that the seller would prefer not to disclose. In any case, it's worth bringing such details to the inspector's attention.

Sellers may arrange furniture and decor to hide imperfections in the home.

Another way to deceive potential buyers is as old as time: simply hide the problem under something.

If a house is shown furnished and decorated, the furnishings can distract from the actual condition of the rooms. Furthermore, people rarely move furniture while viewing a house.

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Here are some common techniques:

• Oddly placed furniture. If there's too much furniture in the room, or it's positioned in an unusual or awkward way, it's worth examining what's underneath and behind it—the seller may be trying to hide damage to the walls or floor.
• Decorative curtains. If you see huge floor-to-ceiling curtains, it's worth wondering if there's even a window behind them. Sometimes they're used to cover a wall damaged by water or other defects.
• Brand new carpet. If you have a new carpet in one area of ​​your home, but the rest of the flooring looks old and worn, try looking underneath. It's possible they've simply been covering up a damaged area.
• Propped doors. Sometimes the seller opens all the doors early to make it easier for buyers to move around the house. This is kind of them, but it's worth removing the props and checking that the doors close properly.
• An overly "fresh" smell. Making a home smell pleasant is an old trick used by real estate sellers. There's nothing wrong with airing out the space or baking cookies before a showing. But if the air freshener's scent is too strong, the seller may be trying to mask an unpleasant odor, such as mold or cigarette smoke.

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