How to sell your house with a pet

When is man’s best friend not man’s best friend? When it comes time to sell your house.

It’s better to have your dog out of the house during inspections. Picture: Realestate.com.au

Having pets at home and trying to keep your property in showroom condition during the sale process are two tasks pulling in very different directions, but agents say there are ways to manage both in order to achieve the best possible result on auction day.

Removing your pet during a campaign

While shipping your pet elsewhere for an extended period of time isn’t feasible or desirable for everyone, it’s the most effective way to get your property clean and keep it that way.

Raine and Horne North Sydney agent Gill Somers says some owners choose to send their dog or cat to a family member or friend during the sales campaign, which removes the need for constant cleaning.

“The best thing they can do is try to remove the animal from the property during the period of the sale.

“So ideally if you’ve got a cat, get the in-laws to look after it, or a friend who can take it away from the property,” Somers says.

Remove your pet temporarily

If you can’t re-house your pet for a few weeks, Jellis Craig Richmond sales consultant Travis Keenan suggests – at a minimum – keeping it well clear of the property during open for inspections.

“We might suggest putting them into doggy daycare or something like that on the day of the open for inspection,” Keenan says.

“Firstly, so that they’re not there for the open for inspection, but also in regards to odour, allergies and things like that.”

Hire a professional cleaner

Anyone who owns a dog or cat knows how prolific their shedding can be at certain times of the year, and few things will turn a prospective buyer off a house like pet hair all over the carpet and furnishings.

Keenan says people with allergies, in particular, will cross your property off their list immediately, so paying a professional to steam clean your carpets and other hair-heavy areas before the campaign starts is money well spent.

“Over three or four years, the odour can build up over time.

“You want a really positive experience for people coming for an open for inspection, and if someone does have an allergy and they’re coughing and sneezing, it’s not exactly the best and most positive experience for that person,” Keenan says.

Remove signs of a pet

There’s no point in removing your cat from the house if you’re going to leave their litter tray in the laundry room.

And while your dog might not be stinking up the living room, the hair-covered dog bed you’ve left outside the back door might be.

Before an open for inspection, remove any signs that a pet has been living at the property.

Top-up clean regularly

If you can’t pay a professional cleaner to continue to visit your property regularly during the campaign, giving it a top-up clean a couple of times a week is important, particularly if your pet is remaining at home.

Keenan suggests cleaning the day before each open for inspection.

“A buyer might be looking at eight open for inspections on a Saturday, so you want to make sure that you’re leaving a good impression on the buyer as much as you can,” he says.

The meeting committee may be friendly, but not everyone loves dogs. Picture: Realestate.com.au

Tend the garden

Pets don’t just affect the inside of your property.

Somers says it’s important to pay attention to any areas your pet frequents regularly, including outside.

“If it’s an outside dog, great, but again it’s making sure your gardens aren’t dug up, making sure there isn’t dog mess everywhere on your lawn,” he says.