How to Make a New House Feel Like Home (Starting With How It Smells)
A new place smells like someone else's life, or like nothing at all. Simple first-week steps that make a new house or apartment feel like yours.
The keys are yours, the boxes are in, and yet the place does not feel like home. Part of that is smell. Every home carries the scent of the people who lived there, and your brain notices it even when you do not. Changing it is one of the fastest ways to make a new place feel like yours.
Week one: clear the old smell
- Open every window for an hour on day one, and as often as you can that first week.
- Clean the places that hold smell: inside kitchen cupboards, the fridge, the oven, closets and bathroom drawers.
- Wash the floors and vacuum carpets thoroughly. Steam-clean them if you can.
- Change the furnace filter, and run the bathroom and kitchen fans.
- Check for hidden sources: the drain under the kitchen sink, the dishwasher filter, the garbage area.
If you have painted, give it a few days to air out first. See How to Get Rid of Fresh Paint Smell.
Week one: make it yours
- Make the bed first. Your own sheets and pillows smell like home.
- Unpack the kitchen early and cook something simple. Nothing says home like a meal you made.
- Hang a few things on the walls, even before everything is unpacked.
- Bring in something living: flowers, a plant, a bowl of citrus.
- Fix the light. Swap harsh bulbs for warm ones in the rooms you use at night.
Choose a signature scent for your home
The fastest way to make a house smell like yours is to choose one scent and use it from the first week. In a few weeks, that scent becomes the smell of home: you will notice it when you walk in after a trip, and so will your guests.
- Pick from what you love wearing or eating. Fresh and citrus, soft and floral, warm and woody: the scents you already like tell you which family to choose. See Fragrance Families Explained.
- Start at the front door. The entry sets the tone. See Best Scent for an Entryway.
- Add a second scent later, once the first feels settled, for bedrooms or bathrooms. See How to Scent Your Home Room by Room.
Not sure which one? A sample set lets you live with three scents for a week each before you commit.
Quick answers
How do I get rid of the previous owner's smell? Air the house out, clean inside cupboards, closets and appliances, wash floors and carpets, change the furnace filter and check drains.
How long does it take for a new house to feel like home? For many people, a few weeks. Daily routines, your own bedding, cooking, and one consistent home scent all speed it up.
What should I do first when I move into a new house? Clean the kitchen and bathroom, make your bed, open the windows, and unpack the things you use every day.
What is a good housewarming scent? Something fresh and welcoming, like citrus, white tea or soft florals. See Housewarming Gifts That Aren't Candles.
Start your new home's scent: try three hotel scents in The Hotel Edit, then choose your favourite as a reed diffuser, like Grand Foyer for the entry.
Explore: the Scaldera Arch · Shop the collection · Take the Scent Quiz · Membership · Refill subscription
More from the Journal
- Guests in 20 Minutes? How to Make Your House Smell Good Fast — The doorbell is about to ring. A quick, realistic plan to make your home smell clean and welcoming in twenty minutes, without covering anything up.
- How to Get Rid of Fresh Paint Smell After Painting a Room — Just painted, or moved into a newly painted home? How long the smell lasts, how to clear it faster, and when it is time to bring scent back in.
- How to Get Rid of Pet Smell in Your Home (Without Just Covering It Up) — A home with pets can smell fresh. The order that works: remove the source, clean the fabrics, move the air, and only then add a gentle scent.