Interesting couple of days of showings. My realtor warned me that feedback from agents can be harsh and that I shouldn't take it personally because some of them are assholes. Wow, he wasn't kidding. One guy (his name is "Rock," seriously) was an ass about my cats. Jerk off. But, I have decided to repair the a/c in the garage apartment and move the cats out there for a while just to keep them out of the way during showings. Plus, I won't have to clean up after them every day. My house is SPOTLESS at the moment. I've been mopping the floors three times a week and cleaning the boxes twice every day, so it smells and looks awesome in the house, but it's awkward dealing with the animals, so better just to move them while showings are going on. Frankly, they won't care as long as they get fed.
Hmm. He's got a point, though. I know a TON of people allergic to cats. Is there a way you could place them with a friend until it sells? I know it sucks, but it really could help potential buyers. I know that if my house was on the market, I wouldn't smoke in it. AND I would have professional cleaners come in to make it appear that it was a non-smokers house. Just a thought if you're looking for a quicker sell.
Yeah, it can be quite a rude awakening. I was going to mention something about it when I first saw this thread, but you seemed very excited about the whole process and I didn't want to rain your parade. Agent feedback can really be a real eye opener because it's totally unbiased. Pets can be a real problem with potential buyers, especially since this is such a buyers market right now. I can tell you that a potential buyer who has never owned pets will turn around and walk away at the very first hint of a pet. Why not, when there are so many other houses on the market? They can afford to be very picky. So without being a Debbie Downer.....get used to it.
This is a good point to remember. My cousin is highly allergic to cats. When he walks in a house with cats his eyes waters and breathing becomes very difficult within a few minutes. He avoids houses with cats for this reason and I am sure perspective buyers would too if they or somebody that would be living in the house had the same ailment. In fact, when we were looking at houses over the past months, nobody had their pets (dogs, cats, or others except fish) in their home when we came for a viewing. Still though, perspective buyers shouldn't be asses about it because it is really your home anyway, when they buy it they have to make it into theirs.
They are all moved to the garage apartment, so it doesn't matter now. I did bring in professional cleaners. My house is freaking spotless.
I suppose I understand that although there are only a very few homes in this area in this price range at the moment. I think I counted 5 total last time I checked. I guess I just remember how I handled it and how other people I've known have dealt with it. When I found a place that I thought was nice AND I understood that it wasn't not brand new and was in need of some work, I didn't go in expecting it to be perfect, you know? It's like "ok, I know the house needs to be painted" and then pulling up and going, "I hate this place because it needs to be painted." Um, duh.
I went to see a house and they had a big dog. They left when we came so we could see the house unhindered but the dog was in the garage. So I couldn't see the garage like I wanted and the dog barked extremely loudly the whole time. However, I wasn't a jerk about it.
See, that makes sense to me completely. Today, a couple came by and the girl was allergic to cats. They looked around at the house, but she didn't go in where the cats were. Her husband and the realtor did and that was fine and they were very nice about it. To me, it's not about the issues that may come up, but how you act when that happens. It's still my house and I still have to live the way that works best for me understanding that I must do everything I can to accommodate people because I am trying to sell the house as well, which I do. I just expect people to be courteous, which may be asking too much. Also, maybe it's just me, but if I find a place I like, repairs, animals, paint color and the like don't really deter me from it. Anything that I can fix or that will be removed - within reason - seems to me to be innocuous. Why should I care that the previous owner painted his walls purple or cooked cabbage every day to the point the place smelled of rotten vegetables? If I'm buying a BRAND NEW house, I have a right to expect it is new. But, a house that is 80 years old? That just seems unrealistic to me. But, I guess I'm more laid back about stuff like that than most people.
I'm the same way. I plan to repaint, recarpet, etc before moving in anyway. But my wife poo poo'd a house just the other week because it had white cabinets in the kitchen. Kitchen size was good. Double ovens and everything else was great. But she wants dark cabinets. When I tell her that we can restain the cabinets she logically understands... but emotionally she's already made up her mind that they're ugly.
Assholes are great asset. You can trust the assholes for their honest assessment of your house. Overly polite agents might not tell you about a problem that will hurt your sale. I have always found the truth to be harsh, but I end up thinking people later. It's all that much better, when it comes to financial matters.
Sounds great for a viewing party. Too bad the Rockets are out now but watching an LBJ vs Kobe finals or rooting for Rafer against Lakers would be very nice either.
Generally, I agree, but this particular person was beyond normal just honest harsh reality. My agent has been brutally honest with me throughout the entire process. He happens to be a friend and I told him from the beginning not to pull punches and he hasn't. It's one thing to be honest. It's another to be an *******. But, no biggie. No harm done.
I can get past pets...as long as they are kept out of the way while I'm viewing. What I can't get past is viewing smokers' homes. There is no hiding that smell. I just thought it was completely ridiculous that, when I was buying a home, there was no way to tell I was going to view a smoker's home with the realtor. Once you step inside, it becomes immediately clear...and the rest of the home doesn't matter. No sale. It's time to leave. The smoke actually changes the color of the paint on the walls. No amount of burning candles can hide the stench from that smell. I don't understand sellers who want to show homes in that condition. But, it happened several times when I was buying a home at the time.
Actually, when I bought this house, it belonged to two smokers. When we first viewed the house, they were both here and smoking at that time. I really can't stand smoke. It bugs the hell out of me, but the ex and I really loved the house, smoke and all. We knew we were going to tear out the carpet and repaint - it was pretty ugly - so we didn't really care about the smoke. By the time we were done with that work and a good clean, you never knew a smoker lived here.
Got generally nicer feedback yesterday - guy said girl was allergic to cats and the house needed more updates than they wanted to make, but that, overall it looked good. Had a couple showings yesterday and a couple more today, plus one I think on Monday with my agent and a woman who seems really interested. Ten or eleven showings in ten days isn't bad. Fingers crossed.
