We've worked with a few sellers this past year who have house pets. Now as a proud pet owners of 2 cats and 2 dogs, we certainly understand that pets are part of the family and most times they can't move out during the time a house is on the market.
However, Smell is the FIRST thing people notice when they enter a home and many buyers may be turned away by pet smells. We once worked with someone who was so sensitive to pet smells that one time we went into a very clean, vacant condo with freshly cleaned carpets and she had to leave due to the pet smell - which I didn't notice by the way. She wasn't used to living with pets though, which makes a big difference.
So, how do you keep from losing buyers over pet odors?
1. Don't Take Offense: First you have to realize that if you have pets, there are odors that some buyers will pick up. That doesn't necessarily mean that your home isn't clean or that your pets aren't clean. Don't take offense. It's just simply something you have to be aware of when selling your home.
2. Extra Clean: The main thing you can do is to keep your home as clean as possible. Keep the pet hair vacuumed up, the litter box cleaned, and the yard picked up. This takes some time but will help you sell your home more quickly. You may also want to consider having your carpets professionally cleaned.
3. Bring in the Fresh Air: before a showing or Open House, do your best to let in some fresh air from outside. Fresh air is the best thing for pet odors. If possible, take the pets with you when you leave, put the pets outside, or in another part of the house until the showing is completed. Also, pick up food bowls, pet beds, bags of food, etc.
4. Avoid Air Fresheners for the most part. They don't usually hide the smell and you'll end up with floral scented pet odors! Fresh baked cookies in the kitchen are good alternative. If you really feel the need for an air freshener, mix a few drops of a Citrus Essential Oil (Lemon, Lime, Orange) with cup of water. Essential Oils can be found at many health-food or grocery stores. You can spray a small amount of this in the air prior to showings.
These tips will help you sell you entice more buyers so you can sell your home faster - which helps your bottom line.
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