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As I said, that's a whole 'nuther topic. (I knew I shouldn't admit that my dog barks. Gasp!) If I want judgement for my dog training failure, I'll go to the dog forum here, but as I said, we used a professional trainer, one on one, certified, expensive, as well as the inexpensive group classes for puppies at the pet store. She barks in some situations. She just does. She's 9 years old now, a great dog 99.9% of the time, but she doesn't do well around strangers. I'm not gonna get rid of her for that.
Yes, there is a PetSmart, but it's about a half hour away. Easier to just drive around close to home, and return as soon as my alarm system texts me the the front door was closed and locked.
So if agents are calling you directly for appointments ask them to text you when they are on their way and when they leave. I do it all the time for sellers when I represent buyers. It builds good will.
Even though I kind of wish we'd been able to get our house on the market earlier, we didn't and by the time it was listed we were long gone and it's vacant. It's really nice not having to endure keeping a house show-clean and we'd have only been able to allow showings evenings and weekends because of pets at home and a long commute to and from work anyway.
Personally, I would not enjoy touring a house with the owner there. It'd be a real turn off from the property but it wouldn't be a deal breaker if it was a home I was really interested in. I like it best when the house is just vacant. No owners, no household things to get in the way of viewing (and no way of hiding defects under rugs and furniture either!)
Interesting list. The only store I knew of that seemed to be dog-friendly (based on how many dogs I see there) is Lowes, but one of your linked articles stated that Lowes is no longer dog-friendly. Hmmm.
My dog (Maltese) is unfortunately a bit too reactive (barky) to take to public places (that's a whole 'nuther topic, and yes, I have tried professional training. To paraphrase an old song, fish gotta swim, and birds gotta fly, and Terriers gotta bark. At least mine does when she sees a stranger).
Most of them said it was manager's discretion. I worked at a large craft store next to a pet store. Our manager fought it for a while, but eventually gave in. We always had all kinds of pets in the store after that.
Why not talk with your husband and agent about dropping the price significantly? That would be one way it would likely to sell more quickly and spare you some hassle with showings.
Oh, I thought that seemed really short. If I tour a house that appeals to me, I'm probably in it for a half hour or so, taking notes, figuring out where furniture could go, while hub looks in more detail at the mechanical stuff. You said "most showings are a mere 10 minutes," but I wonder how many showings that short end up in an offer.
With my clients over the years, it's always the shortest showings that get the offers (except for the 30 second walk in and walk out where they know immediately it's not going to work). When buyers have to be in a house very long, they are usually trying to talk themselves into it. They walk from room to room multiple times trying to see if they can like it or where furniture would go.
What I consider the "serious" buyer can walk in a house and know very quickly if they like it. They don't have to "place" furniture because they'll buy new furniture to fit the space if their current furniture doesn't fit. A house costs several thousands of dollars whereas a couch and tables can cost several hundred. You buy a house, you don't buy a space for your existing furniture, and for that mindset, it's educating the buyer about how to look at houses.
With my clients over the years, it's always the shortest showings that get the offers (except for the 30 second walk in and walk out where they know immediately it's not going to work). When buyers have to be in a house very long, they are usually trying to talk themselves into it. They walk from room to room multiple times trying to see if they can like it or where furniture would go.
What I consider the "serious" buyer can walk in a house and know very quickly if they like it. They don't have to "place" furniture because they'll buy new furniture to fit the space if their current furniture doesn't fit. A house costs several thousands of dollars whereas a couch and tables can cost several hundred. You buy a house, you don't buy a space for your existing furniture, and for that mindset, it's educating the buyer about how to look at houses.
Yeah, I can see where that would be true for many people. We move every year or two (for hub's job), own high quality furniture, and do try to find a house that will largely work with the furniture we own.
Interesting that you have found short showings lead to offers. Maybe I'll hear back from today's 10 min showing!
Why not talk with your husband and agent about dropping the price significantly? That would be one way it would likely to sell more quickly and spare you some hassle with showings.
Just dropped the price a serious chunk yesterday. Then had two showings today.
I knew in the doorway with both homes I purchased. I pretty much vetoed all the ones I didn't purchase in the doorway as well. Some people prefer multiple viewings. I know the house I purchased had a person that came through three times. I can tell with a quick glance if I'm willing to buy it or not. As for the mechanical type stuff, that is what the inspection is far. They are far more thorough than I could ever be, so why bother?
Showings are scheduled in longer blocks because buyers/agents will typically schedule multiple houses back-to-back and overlapping. You never know what you will like, what you won't. Will you get caught by traffic or a train between them. Will you get there and the sellers are scrambling to leave and you have to wait. So, they overlap them. They typically have no intention of spending that whole period in your home.
Hub (a mechanical engineer, and all-around handyman) likes to have a good idea of the condition of big things like HVAC, roof, water heaters, etc. We don't want to waste time and money for an inspection if there are a lot of serious problems that the sellers refuse to fix, then we're back to the drawing board anyway. Easier for him to do a perusal of those things before we make an offer.
As I said, that's a whole 'nuther topic. (I knew I shouldn't admit that my dog barks. Gasp!) If I want judgement for my dog training failure, I'll go to the dog forum here, but as I said, we used a professional trainer, one on one, certified, expensive, as well as the inexpensive group classes for puppies at the pet store. She barks in some situations. She just does. She's 9 years old now, a great dog 99.9% of the time, but she doesn't do well around strangers. I'm not gonna get rid of her for that.
Yes, there is a PetSmart, but it's about a half hour away. Easier to just drive around close to home, and return as soon as my alarm system texts me the the front door was closed and locked.
I wasn't talking about your dog's training level, but the impact of the barking whenever he sees a stranger on the strangers that are coming to see the house. That is what is a problem in and of itself, whether you are there or not.
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Hmmm.
