Cigarette smoke smell can reduce the resale value of homes comes from a post by Realtor.com, the website of the National Association of Realtors about this topic.

The Realtor.com article states that cigarette smoke can reduce the resale value of a home by up to 29 percent!

There are a number of ways to attempt to get the cigarette smoke smell out of the house, but there are a good number of steps to take, and as the article notes, depending on how much the smell has gotten into the systems, sometimes entire HVAC systems may need to be replaced! This important link will help you decide if your HVAC systems need repairing or replacement.

The first home I bought had been lived in by someone who had smoked for over 40 years in the house.

First we had to rip out all of the fabrics in the house. Carpet came up, curtains came down – everything.

Then the ducts got cleaned for the first time. The HVAC also got cleaned and serviced.

Then, we washed the walls, ceilings, window sills, cabinets inside and out, and all appliances with Mr. Clean slightly diluted with water. The nicotine dripped down the walls. It was a very vivid visual!

We did that a second time.

Then, we primed the walls with Kilz stain blocker primer twice.

Then, we painted multiple times.

The floors were sanded and buffed and sealed.

Then, the ducts got cleaned again.

I loved that home, but it was a lot of work to get the smell out! It was proof, though, that you CAN remove the smoke smell and stains.

For more details about Baltimore house values, and what may affect an individual home’s value, please contact me. I would be happy to help!