Top Tips For Selling Your Property When You Have Pets

Making sure that you get the best price for your property can be a challenge and, if you happen to own a pet, this can present additional difficulties.

Here are Warners’ top tips for all you pet owners to help make your home as appealing as possible, both when preparing to get your home onto the market and once potential buyers come calling.

Getting Your Property Ready To Go On The Market

Repair/touch up any damage
A lot of pets will naturally cause small amounts of damage here and there over the years, whether it’s a cat scratching the wallpaper or a dog having a chew at his favourite bit of furniture.

Because you see these things every day you may not notice them but it’s the sort of thing that a buyer coming to the property with fresh eyes can pick up on.

Sometimes it can be as simple as using a throw or some cushions to hide any wee marks on an item of furniture that wouldn’t be sold with the property anyway. Other minor repairs can often be made at relatively low cost and are well worth doing to avoid creating the wrong first impression.

A breath of fresh air
You may well be immune to any pet odours in your home but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there. An unpleasant or unusual smell can be off-putting to potential buyers so make sure that you do everything you can to address this before you put your home on the market. Shampoo any carpets, give the curtains a thorough clean and, where appropriate, make sure to wash your pets regularly.

Make use of odour-eating sprays prior to viewers coming around too to make sure that your property is smelling as fresh as possible.

Consider Relocating Your Pet
While 45% of households in the UK own a pet, this means that the majority of households don’t. Even those that are pet owners might not fall in love with your pet (or vice versa!) so it can be well worth rehousing them during the time that your home is on the market.

Ideally, if you have a friend or relative nearby who can look after them that would allow you to market your home without being too far from your pet.

Handling Viewings

Make Sure Pets Aren’t Around During Viewings
If it isn’t possible to relocate your pet, you should at least try to make sure that they are not around during viewings. If that isn’t possible for a viewing, make sure to tell your agent so that they can make viewers aware in case they have any allergies or, in the case of more exotic pets, phobias.

Hide any litter boxes & toys
The tidier your property is and the less it has signs of your own personal life, the easier it will be for buyers to start to imagine how it could look when they move in. Make sure toys, litter trays, cat trees and the like are hidden away for the duration of the viewing.

A fur-free existence
Some pets can shed a seemingly impossible amount of hair. Make sure that your furniture is thoroughly cleaned and wipe down all surfaces. It will ensure that your property is looking spick and span and avoid the possibility of stray hairs attaching themselves to your viewers’ clothes.

If you need help with selling a property or if you have a question about the market, get in touch with Warners today on 0131 667 0232 or by emailing property@warnersllp.com and one of our team will be delighted to help.