Selling a House with Dogs in Lexington and Columbia SC: 6 Mistakes to Skip
Selling a house with dogs in Lexington and Columbia SC is totally doable. You just have to plan for the dogs before the first showing, not after. Get them out of the house for showings and fix the smell you can't smell anymore. Then patch the yard. Buyers forgive a dog door. They don't forgive a house that smells like one.
Why I know this
I sell houses all over the Midlands, and a lot of my sellers have dogs. My crew at home does too, so I get it. The dogs are part of the household and nobody wants to feel like they're hiding them.
There are situations which I would also live, is when you have more than 1 or 2 and what do you do?!? We talk about it before ever going active on the market. There is always a way to manage as long as you are willing to follow the plan.
What do I do with my dogs during showings?
Take them with you. That's the best answer, every time.
Even the sweetest dog changes the showing. Buyers who are nervous around dogs will rush through. Buyers who love dogs will spend 10 minutes petting yours instead of looking at the kitchen. Either way, you lose their attention.
Also, a barking dog behind a closed door makes people wonder what else is behind closed doors.
If you can't take them, here's the order I'd go in:
1. A friend or neighbor who can grab them on short notice. 2. Doggy daycare or a pet sitter for showing-heavy days, like the first weekend. Sutton Southern Pet Retreat is my go to place. They were once known as Barnwell Oaks Kennels. 3. A crate in the garage or a laundry room, with a note on the door. Last resort, and tell me ahead of time so I can put it in the showing instructions.
Never leave a dog loose in the house or the backyard during a showing. Not even the friendly one. Agents open gates. Dogs get out. Trust me, that is not the phone call you want.
Will buyers smell my dogs even if I can't?
Yea. They will.
You live there, so your nose stopped noticing a long time ago. A buyer walks in cold, and the first thing they notice is the smell. And our Midlands summers make it worse. Heat and humidity hold onto odor, especially in a house that's been closed up with the AC running since March.
Here's what actually works:
Get a friend who doesn't have pets to walk through and be honest with you. Wash every dog bed, blanket, and couch cover. Or store them until closing. Have the carpets professionally cleaned with a pet enzyme treatment. Regular shampoo can just spread it around. Change the HVAC filter, Cheap, quick, and buyers do notice. Skip the plug-in air fresheners. Covering a smell makes buyers think you're hiding one. Also a lot of people are very sensitive to air fresheners and it can cause your dogs to get sick since their noses are ultra sensitive.
Carpet holds alot more than you think. If there's a spot where the dog has had accidents for years, the pad underneath may be the real problem, not the carpet on top.
I know we all hate the duct cleaners and their spammy calls and fb messages, but I will say if you haven't cleaned the ducts out in 5 years and have animals, get it done and put the hanging air fresheners in the vents, it actually does work.
What are the biggest mistakes when selling a house with dogs in Lexington and Columbia SC?
These are the ones I see most. Get ahead of them and your house shows like any other house.
Mistake 1: Waiting until the listing goes live. Do the cleaning, the yard, and the repairs before photos. Photos last the whole listing.
Mistake 2: Leaving the dog stuff out. Bowls, leashes on the hook, the toy basket, the crate in the living room. Put it all in one bin you can grab and toss in the caror garage.
Mistake 3: Ignoring the yard. The ground shows every path a dog runs. Brown spots, dug holes, and that bare strip along the fence all tell a buyer "repairs."
Mistake 4: Skipping the poop patrol. Do a full yard sweep before every showing. Bag it and get it off the property, not in the can by the driveway.
Mistake 5: Forgetting the small damage. Scratched doors, chewed trim, torn screens, nose prints all over the back door glass. Each one is a small fix. Together they look like a house that hasn't been cared for. If you're not sure what else a buyer's inspector will flag, a pre-listing inspection can tell you.
Mistake 6: Not telling your agent about the dogs. I need to know so I can write it in the showing instructions and so nobody gets surprised at the gate.
How do I fix a yard my dogs tore up?
Start early. Grass needs time, and timing matters here.
Bermuda, Zoysia, and centipede, the three grasses you see all over Lexington and Columbia, grow in the warm months and go brown in winter. If you're listing in spring or summer, fill holes, rake out bare spots, and lay sod or seed a few weeks ahead. If you're listing in the cooler months, focus on clean and tidy. Fresh pine straw/ mulch in the beds, edges trimmed, holes filled, and the fence line raked.
A tidy brown winter yard is fine. A yard with holes in it is not.
Also, check the fence. Buyers with dogs will look at it closely. A loose board or a gap under the gate is an easy fix and a real selling point once it's solid.
Do I have to disclose pet damage in South Carolina?
If you know about a problem, plan on disclosing it.
The SC Residential Property Condition Disclosure Statement asks about the floors and other structural parts of the house, along with the roof, plumbing, and other systems. Your answers are based on what you actually know. If the dogs caused damage you know about, like a stained subfloor under the carpet, that's the kind of thing you'd want to talk through before you fill out the form.
The better move is to fix it before listing. Then there's less to explain.
I'm not your attorney or your CPA. Run this by your closing attorney before you count on it.
Your pre-showing dog checklist
Use this before every showing:
Dogs out of the house, or crated with a note on the door. Yard sweep done, bags off the property. Bowls, beds, toys, and leashes in one bin, in the car. Lint roller on the couch and any dark fabric. Floors vacuumed, hair swept out of corners. Windows cracked for 10 minutes if the weather allows. Gate latched.
FAQ
Should I mention my dogs in the listing?
No. The listing should talk about the house. If there's a fenced yard or a dog door, that's a feature worth listing. Who lives there right now is not.
Do dogs hurt my sale price in Lexington or Columbia SC?
The dogs themselves don't. The smell and the damage can. Buyers mentally subtract the cost of new carpet and fresh paint, and they usually guess high.
Is it okay to keep my dog in a crate during showings?
It's okay as a last resort. Put the crate in the garage or laundry room, not a bedroom, and tell your agent so it goes in the showing instructions.
Should I replace carpet before selling a house with pets?
Not always. Start with a professional enzyme cleaning and a smell test from a friend. If the smell is still there, or the pad is damaged, replacing that room is often cheaper than the price cut buyers will ask for.
What about an open house with dogs?
Take the dogs for the whole open house. Plan a long walk, a drive to a park, or a visit with a friend. Open houses bring more strangers through than showings do.
My take
Your dogs are not the problem. The prep is. Do the cleaning and the yard before photos and your house competes like any other house on the market.
If you're thinking about listing and want a second set of eyes, give me a call or text. I'll walk through with you, tell you exactly what I'd fix first, and go over what you'll pay at closing.
Want more seller tips? They're all on the blog.
Courtney McCullough, Pawmetto Homes Team at Tzedi Co Realty. 803-307-7788.
