Selling a Pet Friendly Home
They know that their pets don’t bite, and imagine that yours do. They also probably assume that yours have clawed, urinated and defecated all over the house, even though you may have the most well behaved pet ever. There are some steps you may have to take if you want to sell your home and get a good price for it.
The best method of dealing with having pets while trying to sell your home is only preferable to the buyer and it is to have them stay somewhere else while the house is on the market. This may be extremely tough for you, but will definitely make the sale easier. Storing them temporarily in another room is not necessarily good enough, and unfair to the pets. They should be removed from the house. You could have a friend care for them or board them at a kennel if no one is available.
If this isn’t for you, and for many people it won’t be, than there are some things you can do to make people more at ease with buying a home that pets currently live in. While your home is on the market:
- Keep litter boxes and areas where dogs go to the bathroom spotlessly clean.
- Hire professionals to remove any stains from the carpets and floors that may have been left there by your pets in the past. If the stains cannot be removed, replace the floor
- Do not use air fresheners for leftover odors or smells, they will not work, and some people may be allergic. Use an enzyme cleaner, or call a professional.
- Remove signs of pet life; toys, food and water (when not in use) and photos of pets will have to go temporarily.
- Seal up pet doors.
- Vacuum everyday to keep hair at a minimum.
- Put the animals in carriers and out of the way while you are showing the house, you never know how they will react to having so many strangers in their home.
Since your pet is an invaluable member of your family, these things may seem harsh to you, but they really are necessary steps to help you sell your home. You can’t control how people feel about animals, but you may be able to control how they feel about yours, which means more money for you.