How Pet Owners Should Care for Their Home to Avoid Having it Devalued by Prospective Buyers

Putting aside the great debate about whether dogs or cats make better pets, our furry friends can do a number on our homes; you can see and smell an animal’s presence in a home and it can be difficult to remedy that. This article will provide a handful of tips for having the best of both worlds; a clean house and a pet that loves you unconditionally (or one that ignores you until it’s time to eat). 
First, most pets don’t enjoy being groomed, but this is the number one thing you should do if your goal is to avoid having your home smell like a kennel. Animals don’t particularly care about their smell. If they are not groomed regularly, every piece of furniture they touch is going to smell like them. People tend to become accustomed to stimuli they are consistently exposed to, stimuli like smell. Unfortunately, everyone else who isn’t around it all the time are very aware of the odor in your home. Groom your pets regularly to avoid that off-putting odor. Additionally, if at all possible, invest in furniture that has pet-friendly fabric; linen holds more odor, man-made fabrics like polyester hold less. If nothing else, get slipcovers so you can wash the odor away. Barring that, clean your furniture frequently.
Second, assuming you like your pets, you probably have quite a few pet-specific items around your household; leash, cute jackets for your pet, toys, etc. Rather than creating a chaotic, messy, looking room, consider getting aesthetically pleasing storage items for your pet’s stuff. Just like storage is useful for decluttering your personal items, it works just as well for your pet’s items. On a related note, throw your pet’s toys in the washing machine once in a while, it will go a long way towards reducing odor in your home.
Finally, let’s talk about hair. Even the smallest animal somehow seems to shed its body weight in hair every 5 minutes (don’t fact check us, we’re speaking hyperbolically), so you need to invest in a top-notch vacuum, or a Roomba, to keep your house tidy. 
You might be asking, “what does this have to do with selling homes?” Well, you only get one chance at a first impression, and a buyer’s first impression of your home will dictate whether they want to buy, and what price they are willing to pay. If you don’t develop clean habits for your pets now, it will be very difficult to get rid of the effects of the presence in your home when it’s time to sell. As such, people may be turned off to your home, or devalue your home, because of the perceived odor and mess on your property. Be smart, be proactive, be profitable.
At the Chernov Team we understand that knowledge is power, and knowledge of the little things that determine the value of your home is powerful knowledge indeed. At the Chernov Team we know that whoever comes to the table most prepared leaves with the most, and the Chernov Team always leaves the table with the most.