As a former Realtor, my colleagues definitely recommended NOT to play music during an open house. I personally think that it depends - sometimes it can make a space seem more inviting and encourage people to linger and contemplate living in the space. The music choice - too loud or too fast a tempo - could prove to be distracting, but I think it should be left up to the homeowner.

Years ago, we used to put on a Leonard Cohen tape when we wanted the party to end. Worked like a charm, too.

Maybe a little Miles Davis piping through a sleek modern space...classical or Baroque music in a Victorian...setting the mood can help with a sale.

classical, maybe with some bieber thrown in

Well, it would depend. If built-in speakers (especially really great ones) are being sold with the house, play something to highlight them... If all you have is a crappy boom box, don't press play.

As far as what to go with, take a cue from grocery stores. Multiple studies have shown that background music at the right tempo makes people move more slowly and take more time. In grocery stores, that means more sales. Maybe in an open house it would translate to someone taking a longer, deeper look in the house.

to echo LSUgrad, if the house offers tech-features, and you're streaming, or if it had wiring, speakers, etc... i'd say it's a good idea, but as mentioned, something instrumental, quiet, etc would likely fit the bill better than, say, rap.

our modern townhome garnered quite a bit of specific interest (i.e.: a few folks were /very/ interested as opposed to a lot being marginally interested) and it was likely not because of our choice of music, but because it showcased the ability to play music throughout the space through the built in network. like staging (through which you might not actually like that specific sectional, but you could see how a sectional could fit i the space), it showcased what /could/ be done...

I wouldn't do it under ordinary circumstances. I find country music, for example, VERY irritating, so any choice you make might alienate a potential buyer with specific tastes. How would you know?

However, our house has a big home theater, with a 110 inch HD projection screen, Blu-Ray and 7 channel surround sound. If we wanted to sell, that equipment would be included and probably the leather recliners as well, so we'd be crazy not to have a beautiful movie playing for an open house! (Friends who visit want to move in! Especially guys!)

So, again, if it showcases a selling feature of the house, music would be fine. (I'd probably choose something appropriate to the target buyer -- depending on the style of the house (whether traditional or contemporary) and likely age (based on neighborhood considerations.)

I'm still stuck contemplating what kind of music would sell the house pictured above ... hmmmm ...

I would say NOT to play music - no matter what you think everyone might like. Music is way too personal. The way the house smells and how clean it is are so much more important. And I don't think cinnamon cookies in the oven is the best option. Neutral, clean is best - if it seems like you are trying to cover up smells (with a heavy scent of cinnamon or baby powder for example) it sends the exact wrong message. I've sold quite a number of homes and have shopped for even more. The worst? A nice "looking" home with dog smell so strong it burned my eyes and I had to leave before even seeing the rest of the house.

I think that soft, classical music played at low volume can help set the right mood during a showing. My husband and I recently purchased our second home. We saw around 20 houses. Just one house had music playing (soft classical), and it did encourage us to linger throughout the house. The music (coupled with a few candles) helped create a nice atmosphere and made us feel at home. We knew that the house wouldn't work for us once we saw that half of the space was a windowless finished basement, but the music definitely set the right tone for our visit. katermoo's right about selecting the appropriate tempo...slow, gentle music makes us feel relaxed and encourages us to really consider the home...a faster tempo makes us want to hurry through. Also, anything other than widely-recognized classical tunes could detract from the house if a prospective buyer happens to dislike the style of music that is playing.

If I had built-in speakers I think I'd be playing a looped "buy-me buy-me" subliminal message ;)

When we were house hunting, I found things like playing music and the fake food and place settings to be way too contrived for me and didn't annoy so much as I noted they were silly and since we bought a house with none of that - didn't make much of a difference.

We would leave soft music on during some of our showings and the open house, because we wanted people to notice the fact that we had built-in speakers throughout the house.

Music arouses such strong emotions that I wouldn't use it since at best it would be a distraction having nothing to do with this home. At worst, it would backfire and drive people away no matter its style, because just like I dislike country and rap, plenty of other people dislike classical and rock. If it were used, low volume instrumentals would be less bad than vocals.

Smart to showcase built-in speakers.

Could see doing it if the house (not your decorating, but the house itself) is in a particular style you want to highlight with coresponding music, but this applies to a minority of homes.

Usually, I feel like they are trying to distract me from some flaw in the house.

When I sold, I didn't consider music, as I had staged the place by moving all extraneous stuff and furniture to my new home, and that included my stereo cabinet and CDs. (Not an issue, of course, for those whose music is on an Ipod.)

Still, I am aware that someone is trying to manipulate my thoughts with the music, and am on guard. Best to do it with your furniture and staging, I think. If it looks like just what the owners live with, it doesn't feel like conscious manipulation (even if it is.)

Big no.

I want to see how isolated the house is from noise from the street, neighbors, etc. If I walked into a house with music, I would ask them to turn it off.

My house sold in three weeks in this housing market. I embraced *every* tip I read, including playing jazz softly in the background -- we're talking Diana Krall, not Ornette Coleman.

Most of the advice I got was about projecting hyper-cleanliness and incorporating smells that are "universally" positive because of the psychological power of scent. Even dusty baseboards can be a subliminal detractor.

My neighbor's house was also on the market, and my buyer went back and forth between our two homes all day. My house was 100 sq feet, smaller and priced $10K higher. We had nearly identical footprints. She said she chose my place because it felt like she could move in with out cleaning or painting.

My open house checklist:

Run Jazz playlist (just above audible -- it should barely be noticed)
Open all blinds, and turn on all lights
Open all doors in the house - use doorstop to keep them open if needed
Bake 1/2 dozen toll-house cookies for the scent (get pre-made dough in a tube)
Green plant on the dining table
Bud vase with few posies in the bathrooms
No personal photos anywhere
No personal grooming items in shower/on counter (I put these in a basket and threw them in the car with me during showings)
No dirty laundry (ditto -- throw the laundry in the car)
Remove pet food bowls (put pets and food/water outside, or take pets with you)
Quick clean with orange/citrus scented cleaners incuding counter tops, toilets, and any dusty surfaces (citrus is a scent known to improve mood, plus the house gives off a clean vibe)
Vacuum
Make sure windows are clean
Make sure fan blades, window sills, and light fixtures don't have a trace of dust
Make sure baseboards are clean, and touch-up nicks if needed

We toured a house that had soft music playing. It was distracting and made it seem like the sellers were desperate (which - to me - meant no one else liked their house either).
Don't do it.

@urbancricket, Congratulations!

Urbancricket is right. Uber-clean is key. And barely-above-audible music (no lyrics) makes the buyers more comfortable about whispering their thoughts to each other. A perfectly quiet stranger's house can be a little creepy.

My home is currently for sale and I definitely play music. My home is on 16 acres in the country with an in-ground pool, patio, pergola, beautifully landscaped and I play music on the outside speakers. I'm selling not only a home but a lifestyle and only certain people are looking for this type of home and I think the music can only help. I play the Sirius Coffeehouse station.

i went to an open house on sunday and they were playing solt classical music. when you added that to the dated decour it made it feel very old and VERY hard to just concentrate on the bones of the house

I can understand why music would be a turn off, especially if it makes you feel like you're in a funeral home or an elevator. Given the comments here today, I think the case can be made either way: music or flowers or anything else can add or detract depending on overall effect. If I were buying an estate with a pool and patio and gardens, and there was a built-in sound system, it would definitely be a plus to know that I could host a party with all the right mood music. If I were in a stodgy traditional home with classical music, I might feel like there was too much sensory overload to *see* the bones of the home.

I think the point is: be honest with yourself: if you're hiding something behind music or flowers or ornate furniture, then your buyer's BS detectors will notice and be turned off. If you're enhancing with right balance of any given touch, then your buyers shoudn't even notice.

So when you're selling, how do you know what's cloying and what's accent? If it doesn't come across as natural, then don't do it.

A bouquet in a condo bathroom is just stupid. A bud vase with a daisy is clean and believable.

An fully-set dining table in a mansion with a table that seats 22 makes sense. It doesn't make sense in a 2200 sq ft. bungalow.

If you have fully-decked out home theatre, run a movie with the lights dimmed and the sound low. If you have an entertainment center, shut off the TV and close the cabinet door if you can.

If you have a visually ornate home, don't add more distractions. If you're home is empty, consider staging it with some simple furnishings to help the buyer with visualizing scale.

I personally like music - I played the three She & Him albums on repeat. I lived in a kind of cold loft, and I really think the music enlivened the space and showcased our throughout-the-home surround sound.

I knew it was kind of a gamble, but their music is cheerful, kind of familiar, but not so familiar you would whisper to your partner, "I HATE this song."

Verdict: our place sold in 3 weeks. In Minneapolis. In May 2010, with a market flooded with condos.

Probably a good idea to feature built-in speakers (which I don't have).
I think it must be really hard to pick a generally liked music - I would be thrilled by a classical opera but country, rap or jazz would turn me off (yes, even Diana Krall).

I think the answer is right here with all the comments. Given that about half the comments are "no" and half "yes" it seems to me that no music is the safest. You're unlikely to turn off a buyer because you don't have music playing and stand a 50/50 chance if you do.

And scents like candles and air fresheners are a big no-no too. A lot of people have allergies and chem sensitivies. Personally if someone was baking something with cinnamon I'd get out of the house immediately before I had a reaction. I *have* left showings when the candles were too much for me.

You're more likely to get it wrong regardless of your personal taste; best to play it safe.

I've heard that personal items in a house put people off buying it. I can say that music would definitely fall in that category.

I was going to say "sure why not?" until I read the comment regarding street noise. When I was condo shopping this past year in Chicago, one of my top concerns was finding a very quiet unit. The one I eventually bought was the quietest I found, actually. So yeah, in the city, no music!

I agree with UrbanCricket. The single best thing you can do to help your chances of selling is to stage, remove ALL personal items (photos, anything that's been in your mouth or through your hair...etc) and super sparkle sterile CLEAN.

I haven't sold a house yet, but my plan when I do sell my home is make it look like a 5 star hotel suite. Stylish but universal. Clean, but plush, simple, but luxurious.

White linens, white towels, white slippers by the bed LOL. CLEAN white robe hanging in the bathroom. Even those little mini-soaps. White shower-curtain.

Smells are even more personal than music. Air freshener or incense is a big mistake. True cleanliness in a home is odorless. Air fresheners are a red flag that something that couldn't be removed and that stinks permanently will become the buyer's burden. Also, most air fresheners give me headaches or even asthma, so I have to leave the open house immediately even if it's otherwise attractive. Cleaning with a citrus product is fine, but there should be too little left in the air to be noticeable during the showing.