My New Blog

We love our Pets!  I know do!  I have a 17 year old Chow Corgi mix named Chow who has been an added joy to my life.  She's seen me through two state moves and several homes, sometimes I wonder if I added stress to her life and caused her gray hairs. 

The problem I have as a Realtor® is relaying the message to clients that their pet is causing their home NOT to sell.  They feel like I do and have a sincere belief that their pet is part of their family. 

Recently, I had an open house at a client's home and when I walked in, it was very apparent by the smell that a pet lived in the home.  Of course we burned candles but the smell was still there.  It was in the furniture and the carpet.  The beautiful rug on the floor was shredded on every end leaving me to believe that the pet did it or there was also a rat present somewhere.  When I asked the seller to replace the rug, she said it wasn't in her budget.  I said nothing about the smell because sometimes, this information has to come from someone outside of the Realtor®.

After the open house, I had the big job of getting this huge dog back in the house.  As I got closer to the dog, he snarled at me, because I am to him a stranger, and wouldn't allow me to put him back in the home.  When I told my clients, the response was, "if you didn't put the chain on him, he won't let you take it off".  Well, don't you think this was information I needed up front before I tried to unleash this animal??  This could have been a tragedy.

So, here are some tips for the seller that have pets in the home, whether it's a bird or a bird dog...

1) Do not assume that everyone like or are comfortable with pets.

2) Do not ask your Realtor® to be responsible for your pets. 

3) If your pet is an escape artist, please let the Realtor® know this, their time is valuable and can't spend hours searching for your loved one.

4) If you don't really know how your pet will act around strangers, remove him from the home during showings for everyone's safety.

5) Before your open house, please clean the carpet and put down a pet deodorizer on the carpet.  Pet smells are very apparent, especially to people that do not have pets in the home.

As you see, these are small things that could make a big impact on showing and selling your home!  Please pass these tips on to your clients or your friends who have pets that are considering placing their home on the market.  Remember, after the house is sold, you can go back to letting your pets roam free!

Melissa