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Nationwide's top ten tips for selling your house, after studying people's likes and dislikes, is as follows:
- Tidy up? a clutter free environment can make all the difference. Over half of potential buyers say the find an untidy house a major turn off
- Be polite? almost 70% of buyers are put off by a rude seller or estate agent
- Eliminate smells..? 75% of people are put ff by household smells made by pets or cigarettes
- Tackle DIY disasters? poor building work or DIY is a big turn off according to around 90% of those surveyed
- Fix those fence panels? Over 80% of viewers would think twice about putting in an offer on a house with a garden that lacks privacy
- Introduce 'green' features? the majority of homebuyers claim that a house with environmentally friendly features has more of a positive influence on their decision than an attic room (68%), period features (63%) or walk in wardrobes (62%)
- Focus on the kitchen... over half of potential buyers believe this to be the most influential room when making the decision to buy
- Ditch the decking? along with Jacuzzis, decking is one of the features least likely to tempt a potential buyer
- Avoid the summer drought? choose your time to sell carefully. The summer season is traditionally slow as people are away on holiday, and over November and December as people prepare for Christmas
- Watch out for HIPs this summer? From August 1 it will be a legal obligation for owners of homes over four bedrooms to commission a HIP, or home information pack
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'The whole house shook. Everything was white. For four months, it felt as if we were on Mars': The story behind one of Hampshire's most breathtaking gardensWhen Kim Wilkie sculpted a tiered grass amphitheatre behind this 17th-century house, the garden finally settled into place, as Non Morris discovers.
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'I have lost a treasure, such a sister, such a friend as never can have been surpassed': Inside Jane Austen's Winchester home, the house where she penned her final words and drew her final breathJane Austen spent the last days of her life in rented lodgings in Winchester, Hampshire. Adam Rattray describes the remarkable recent discoveries made about the house in which she died.
