They're not bad people. They just want top dollar, and sometimes that means hiding a few things in plain sight.

Here are 6 things to keep a look out for.

1. Fresh paint in just one room If every wall in the house is the same tired color except one room that looks freshly painted, ask why. Fresh paint in a single area usually means they're covering something. Water damage. Cracks. Mold. Stains. A good agent will ask. A great agent will get an inspector in there.
2. Rugs in weird places A rug in the living room is normal. A rug in the middle of the kitchen or randomly placed in a hallway? That's covering damaged flooring, stains, or cracks in tile. Move it. Seriously. You're allowed to look.
3. Heavy air fresheners or candles everywhere One candle on the counter is staging. Plug-ins in every outlet with a diffuser running in the hallway is a cover-up. They're masking pet odor, mildew, cigarette smoke, or something worse. If you walk in and it smells like a Bath & Body Works exploded, start asking questions.
4. Strategically placed furniture That bookshelf that's weirdly tight against the wall in the basement. The dresser blocking half a wall in the bedroom. Sellers don't rearrange furniture for fun before a showing. They rearrange it to hide wall damage, cracks, or patch jobs they don't want you to see.
5. A running dehumidifier in the basement If the dehumidifier is going full blast when you walk down there, that basement has a moisture problem. Period. Ask for the water intrusion history. Ask for any past repairs. And make sure your inspector checks every inch of the foundation.
6. Utilities that are "not working right now" The hot tub isn't running. The pool pump is off for the season. The second HVAC unit is "being serviced." If it doesn't work during the showing, assume it doesn't work at all until proven otherwise. Get it in writing that everything will be operational before closing.

Here's the thing. None of this means the house is bad or the seller is dishonest. It just means you need to dig a little deeper.