10 Interior Design Trends That Turn Off Home Buyers

By: Patricia-Anne Tom You want your home to look its best, and maybe you’ve been inspired by the interior design trends you’ve seen in magazines, on TV or on design websites. But following some of the hottest home remodeling and interior design trends can backfire when it comes time to sell your home. Buyers want to picture themselves in a home, and highly individualistic touches can get in the way of that. When you’re ready to sell your home, it’s best to put things in pristine, move-in condition and remove all of the individual touches that made your house a home. After all, your goal is to get potential buyers to picture themselves in the home—and they won’t be able to do that if your decorating style still dominates. Check out the caveats that go along with these home interior design trends. 1. Boldly Painted Walls Decorators often tout black or another bold paint color as the perfect backdrop to metallic accessories or appliances in modern home design. The reality is that people prefer the exterior and interior walls of a home to be neutral. Even though repainting is cheap and relatively easy to do, it’s still a pain and buyers might not want to bother. When decorating, your best bet is to stick to an appeasing hue for the walls and use accessories to provide pops of color. 2. Wallpaper Bold, graphic patterns increasingly are being incorporated into interior design, often in the form of wallpaper. But wallpaper—even if it’s only on one wall—is an extremely personal choice and time-consuming to remove if it doesn’t appeal to the buyer Consider replacing wallpaper with a neutral paint for broader appeal. 3. Lavish Light Fixtures While potential buyers want rooms that seem airy and bright, beware of installing a showpiece light fixture that is too modern or ornate. Fixtures should enhance your home—not steal the spotlight. 4. Gleaming Gold Designers may be mixing silver and gold to give homes star quality, but it might be wise to change out fixtures if they have the wrong metallic sheen. Gold can give a home an outdated, ’80s feel. Switching out the faucet and door handles with a more appealing finish—such as brushed nickel—is relatively inexpensive and can help make your home appear sleek rather than out of style. 5. Converted Garages People want a covered parking space so that they have a safe place for their car—especially in areas where street parking is at a premium. Additionally, people often use their garage as storage space. If you convert your garage into a space tailored your specific needs, such as a music practice room, it may not suit your potential buyers. 6. Converted Bedrooms Like with the garage, people want rooms built for their original purpose. If you’ve converted an unused bedroom to an office, walk-in closet, or a game room, make sure you can easily convert it back to a bedroom when you’re ready to sell. 7. Carpets While designers love to play with the texture of shag carpeting as it feels soft underfoot, the majority of home buyers prefer hardwood floors. People assume carpets trap dirt, germs and odors, and they don’t want to go through the hassle of steam cleaning their home before they can move in. Potential buyers also don’t want to spend time removing carpet to expose hardwood floors. If someone really loves carpet, it’s much easier for them to add it themselves—after the purchase. 8. Too-Lush Landscaping The “outdoor living room” is all the rage, and you may be tempted to build out your backyard into a lavish wilderness of flowers. But potential buyers may be hesitant to buy a home with an overly landscaped property requiring a lot of maintenance. Focus on creating or maintaining a nice and neat outdoor space that people can enjoy without too much fuss. 9. Pools and Hot Tubs A pool may seem like a luxurious feature, but it can be a big turnoff for buyers. Pools are perceived to be expensive to maintain and potential safety hazards, especially for families with children. Above-ground pools are eyesores and can leave a dead spot in the backyard. These sentiments extend to hot tubs, too. Many people see hot tubs as breeding grounds for bacteria, and they are not a feature easily removed from the deck or back yard. 10. Fancy (or Not) Pet Products Sales of pet products are expected to increase nearly $3 billion from last year, and there’s an increasing market for luxury pet items. But even animal lovers don’t want to see another family’s pet paraphernalia in a potential home. Even if your home is immaculate, the presence of pet-related items will give the impression that it’s dirty. Be sure to remove all traces of your pet—including toys, food dishes and photos—before listing your home for sale.