Before an open house I baked chocolate chip cookies—not for ethics, for aroma. People decide with their noses before they decide with their checkbooks. Real estate is sensory and strange.
I rearranged furniture, opened curtains, hid laundry like a criminal. Then I stood smiling while couples whispered about roof age and marriage stress. I had scripts. I also had empathy.
Now I bake when friends come to see a house they might buy, unofficially, over wine. I do not advise. I listen and pour. Cookies still help.
If you sell a home, clean the sink and light a candle that does not smell like lawsuit. If you visit, compliment the light. Someone chose it on purpose.