When preparing your home for sale, the ultimate goal is to ensure that the home shows at its very best by highlighting the features and eliminating distractions. This allows you to appeal to the greatest number of potential buyers possible, strengthening your selling position and encouraging a quick and profitable sale.
While the Beyond The Stage Homes team is comprised of devoted animal lovers, not all home buyers appreciate our furry friends, and in fact, a home with pets can often be a cause of concern for many, especially for those with allergies. Evidence of pets such as toys, food dishes, and pet beds can also put potential buyers on the lookout for damage throughout the house that may have been caused by the animals. Eliminating the presence of pets in the home will allow buyers to focus on the home’s features, instead of scrutinizing and looking for flaws. Even caged animals can turn off or simply distract potential buyers.
Additionally, the home-selling process can be stressful for your pets. To learn more about how this impacts them, we spoke to some furry friends about their recent experiences when their humans listed their home for sale.
As allies of the 4-legged community, we recommend removing all pets from the home when listing it for sale, not only for showings but for the duration of the sale. Reach out to trusted friends and relatives about opening their home temporarily to your fur babies. This will mean less stress on both you, and the pets. Animals can be incredibly sensitive to changes, and to strangers in the house (even when they are removed from the home for showings), and you won’t worry about trying to maintain the home with the fur, dirt, and other messes that these pets create for us.
Tips for selling your home with cats:
If your cat(s) absolutely must remain in the house for showings, their presence should be minimized as much as possible.
• Clean the litter box twice daily, and be sure to empty completely and wash at least once a week
• Remove cat and litter box for showings if possible (sometimes this can be as simple as a car ride for the duration of the showings)
• Store food in an unmarked, opaque container – this will help to keep it hidden from buyers, as well as keep the food fresh
• Remove all scratch trees, beds, and all toys
• Ensure that their food area is kept clean and tidy, and remove it for showings
• Vacuum and dust daily
Similarly, for dogs:
• Remove the dog for all showings
• Hide all evidence (leashes, food, toys, beds, etc.)
• Store food in an unmarked, opaque container – this will help to keep it hidden from buyers as well as keep the food fresh
• Thoroughly clean all fabric surfaces (couch, carpet, rugs, bed, etc.)
• Keep dog(s) well-groomed
• Clean the house regularly
• Keep the yard cleaned and patch any bare areas
If removing your pets is not an option, minimize pet odours by cleaning your pets regularly, as well as areas that they tend to hang out, and open the windows for at least a few minutes every day, regardless of the season.
Voted Top 75 Most Influential People In Real Estate Staging by the Real Estate Staging Association, Beyond The Stage Homes CEO Shauna Lynn Simon is an award-winning entrepreneur, home staging industry influencer, residential designer, business coach and author.
