Sentimental value is one of those terms that is hard to pin down. You usually come across it when you're trying to buy something such as a loft. Torontonians will try anything to get a better price out of you, so claiming that an item has sentimental value is sometimes a way of justifying their inflated view of its value. You may think, then, that sentimental value is just something made up, but it's not. You're probably attached to something you own right now without even realizing it.

The reason humans often find sentimental value in items they own, such as homes in Etobicoke or cars or stuffed animals is that we have a tendency toward anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphism is when people project feelings onto an inanimate object, imagining it to be happy or sad or to have a personality of its own. It is most noticeable in children, who will give names and life stories to all of their toys and may even believe they have feelings or consciousness way down deep inside or when people go to sleep.

As we get older, our education teaches us that inanimate objects such as wood and plastic are not alive and therefore have no feelings, but this does not change our natural instincts. We still bond with our Mississauga homes, our bicycles, and our favorite sweaters. It's just that in most cases we refrain from giving it a name or talking to our friends about how sad it would feel if you had to sell it for fear of having them think you're crazy. Instead, we grown ups trot out the term sentimental value.

Not everything has sentimental value, of course. We might have a whole garage full of motorcycles and only one that draws us in. Most people are completely unable to identify what it is that attracts them to one Puerto Vallarta vacation rental over another. It's like trying to figure out why blue is their favorite color rather than red. But if we analyze the situation, we may find that having a major event occur with, in, or on a particular object and the object's features resembling parts of a human face usually plays a role in developing sentimental attachments.

Dealing with a sale in which an item of sentimental value is involved takes more sensitivity than a normal sale. If you're buying a scooter its owner has become attached to, emphasize the good home you will give it and how you will study English in Canada together. If you're selling an item you feel attached to, it can help to "say goodbye" to it and be selective about who you sell it to.