Keeping a Listing Tidy While Pets Live in It | Realtor Magazine
Making sure a listing is clean when the owners have a dog or cat can be tough. Pets can leave behind messes, scratch marks, fur, dander, and odors. Home improvement website HouseLogic offers some of the following tips on how to tidy a house with pets while it’s on the market:
Steam clean all fabrics.
Steam clean carpets, rugs, upholstered furniture, and the drapes. “Job number one is to take care of [the soft surfaces in your house],” Melissa Maker, owner of a Toronto cleaning service, told HouseLogic. “They hold odors and hair like nothing else.”
Groom.
Have the pet professionally groomed to remove more hair and dander. Be sure to brush the pet regularly—outside is preferable—to get most hair on the brush and not on your sofa or rugs.
Clean tile grout.
Tile is resistant to dog stains, but the grout isn’t. Steam clean grout to lift out stains and odors. A pro can chip away the old to put in the new.
Purchase an air purifier.
Add an air purifier tower with a HEPA filter. It’ll pull hair and dander from the air before it reaches your HVAC.
Use enzymatic cleaners.
“Enzymatic cleaners are made of beneficial bacteria that eat stains and odors,” HouseLogic reports. They’re made to tackle a specific type of stain. Apply them liberally to stains, regardless of how old the stain is.
Use charcoal to absorb odors.
Charcoal can pull out moisture and odors from the air. Hide small bags around or hang it in places your pet spends time in the most often. HouseLogic recommends purchasing charcoal bags that aren’t presoaked.