When selling your home, pets can be a problem.

When you're selling your home, pets can be a problem. What do you tell the home owner? I have gone into quite a few homes where the seller has a pet.This can become an issue when you are staging a home. Don't get me wrong I love pets, as a matter of fact, I had a cat for 17 years, who just recently died. It broke my heart so I know how beloved a pet can become. But when you're selling your home pets can become an issue. There are smells that we need to address and then there is the matter of their bowls and don't forget some dogs love to jump on people!

First things first, lets address the smell issue. The house MUST be odor free. If it means hiring a professional, then that's what needs to be done. I recently found out that 60%-66% of people do not have pets!! I was surprise. I thought the numbers would be higher for pet owners. That's why it's so important to eliminate odors.

Now comes the difficult part, telling the home owner that the pet should be put into their cage when showing the house. You don't want the dog to jump on the potential buyers. I have a friend who is afraid of dogs! So it's important to leash your dog. So how do we approach the subject of leashing the dog? I have found it very useful quoting the stats to home owners. It gives your point validity. Making them understand that not all people are dog lovers. There are some people like my friend, who are afraid of dogs. So it would be in their best interest to cage to leash their pets. Remind the home owner that they are selling their home, so pets have to be addressed.

It's also a good idea to point out that some buyers may be allergic to dogs or cats. So keeping their home clean and odor free is important, as well as leashing or caging their pets. So, even though when selling your home, pets can be a problem, there is a simple solution. Just be patience and understanding to the home owners' feeling and make them understand that it is in their best interest to have this matter taken care of.