Topic: What is the best smell in a model apartment for leasing?

Apparently March is Model Apartment month considering how many topics we've discussed about it here, and I want to throw out a survey-type question: What is the best aroma to have in a model apartment for the leasing tour? Completely subjective, so no wrong answer!

My vote would be Pumpkin Pie, which is actually lit in my office right now!

We use an Orange/Vanilla citrus spray.

Cucumber melon or cookies.

I like the smells of fresh cooking. Since I live onsite; I have been known to throw something in the slow cooker and take it to the model. When the day is done and I go to turn stuff off; I have dinner ready.


I do the glade plug ins and rotate the scents regularly, I do seasonal scents or scents of fresh baking if I can find it.

I do like the plug - ins and I think in warmer weather the fruity and citrus scents are more appealing and in the cooler months scents like apple and pumpkin pie are wonderful.

I actually make bath salts and candles so I'm very scent sensitive :) I do not allow synthetic fragrance in my community as I can not tolerate the smell, and most people who have perfume allergies react more to synthetic scents.
In the winter we slow bake pies in our mini-model if we have one, in the warmer months we use cookies.
@Johnny and Mark, please be careful with the plug-ins. I know of a company that lost a clubhouse because some oil leaked on the plug and it overheated causing a fire!

I love the smell of vanilla. We usually add vanilla or "fresh air" scent to our paint and it makes the model smell so nice. We buy the bottles from Paint scentsations and it's a great marketing tool. It's nice also because there's no visible plug in.

Cookies are always good, too. :)

Johnny that's brilliant! I'm going to "borrow" that idea!

I like warm apple pie or fresh baked cookie scents, but we don't want to leave an unattended oven so we just put some vanilla scent in the paint.

I have heard that if you place a small pan of water with cinnamon sticks in the oven, it gives a great smell and is easy to maintain. Just use the 'warm' setting and make sure you turn the oven off at the end of the day.

I will try that. Thanks for the idea.

I really like the Glade Fresh Linen Candles too, but of course we have to be careful!

My sister has a scented 'non' candle; I think it is a scented candle with no wick; but you place it on a small electric warmer plate.... I don't even think it is wax so it doesn't melt. Next time I visit her at her place, I will take a look. I think it may be a PartyLite product?? But I do reserve the right to be wrong....

I've heard that best 'closing' scents are vanillia, apple cin., or those that instill 'warmth', yes, there is a study group to find these things out!! However, in spring/summer possibly opt for lighter fragrances.

I use Walmart's own brand of plug in-s. I use a combination of Vanilla & whatever Spice version they have in season at the time to get the apple pie scent (I stock up in the Fall with gingerbread. It's suble long lasting & not overpowering. It's also economical. My regional manager liked it so much she manadated all our sites buy them too. I also had frequent comments from traffic.

Being terrified of starting a fire, we eliminated the use of plug-ins and lit candles. I have used the scentsy warmers before, too. But the best reaction we get is when people come in after the Office has just been cleaned. People always say, "OOOHHH, smells so fresh in here!" It gets the appointment off to a great start.

Lavender has been proven time and time again as the scent for sales. Many high end retail shops use this.

My Ozone machine going full blast for a week.

Ozone machines are fantastic for getting rid of odors but the room should be vented and allowed to fill with fresh air since breathing ozone is highly toxic.
You are not leaving it on and allowing people to enter are you? Just checking.

@Mark

Actually, I was kidding. I do Ozone each time, and frankly I can't stand the smell of the Ozone while running. Ozone machines are worth weight in gold for smoking apartments though.

I can even smell the ozone on my clothes at night after work! I call it the "nothing-ness of nothing-ness" for want of a better word. Good to hear from you Sir!

I say anything but raw sewage, mold, garbage, rotting rodent corpses....lol

Who uses anything in their paint to reduce paint odors?

We use scented paint always, only renting an ozone machine as a last resort. Usually after a smoker vacates, we do a full paint, seal floor, change carpets, and that does the trick. If the carpets don't need changed we clean them and then do the ozone.

The disadvantage of using an ozone machine is the down time. We can't afford to leave a unit vacant for two days to ozone treat it then air it back out. It is much faster to paint and seal, which can be done in less than a day.