Selling Your Home: What to Do with the Pets?

Pets and Home Sales - Guelph Real Estate BlogOkay, okay – first things first. Anyone who has known me for more than five minutes will know this: I’m a huge animal advocate. I love and respect animals, and I am ever-grateful that my two Boston Terriers allow me to live in their home. They’re so generous that way.

But pets and home sales? Well… that’s not quite so simple. The reality is that, if you’re selling a home in Guelph, you’ve got to face the facts: pets and selling a home don’t always go hand in paw… at least not easily.

We real estate agents love to tell war stories, and some of the best ones seem to involve animals. Oh, the feline escape artists, the amorous humping dogs, the swearing birds in cages, a reptile or two on the loose, and so forth. I won’t pretend to say that I’ve seen it all, but I’ve certainly seen my fair share!

When I sit down with clients to talk about listing their Guelph home for sale, we go through the basics of a marketing and promotion strategy, of course. But let’s face it, the logistics of selling a home aren’t always easy, and I never overlook the furrier members of the household and how they’ll be affected by the process. After all, of course selling a home in Guelph for top dollar as quickly as possible is the goal–but doing so with the least amount of stress on all family members is key.

Over the years, experience has taught me that the home selling process is just as stressful for pets as it is for people. Often, I suggest taking the first week to 10 days of a listing to temporarily re-home your pet. This is the busiest time for viewing appointments, so it’s an ideal time for your pets to take a little vacation and head to a friend or family member’s house. And kennels? Well, they’ve evolved and many are the equivalent to a spa getaway for your fur-kids! Would they rather be stressed out by strangers walking through their home–or off at a spa-like retreat? The answer is obvious.

So, pets are removed from the premises and, presumably, you’ve gotten your home all prepped and Staged… time to list. This way, showings are going to be easier to accommodate, with no one worrying about a pet getting loose. That’s so key because, believe it or not, some people actually don’t like animals.

I know… like… really?? But, we are a diverse society and, believe me, just as many buyers will find a puppy adorable as will find the idea of a dog in the home fundamentally off-putting. Home Stagers pretty much universally suggest that you remove all signs that a pet is on premises. So, there it is.

Occasionally, I think of selling my own home in Guelph. I’ve got two dogs and a toddler, so for me it’s easy to plan the scenario. Quite simply, we’d all need to move out for a week or two. Would it be ideal? Not really. But you know what is ideal? Getting a great price for my home in Guelph, and selling the property with as little fuss as possible for my family, and that includes the two furriest members  who, after all… run the joint.

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