What would you do with your birds if you had to put your house on the market?

[qmichelle]

Real estate articles always recommend not only getting the pets out of your home, but removing all signs of them, too.

Selling a House With Pets at Home - How to Sell a House Where Pets Live

It may be one thing to grab a few food bowls, some toys, and a dog bed to get Fido out of the house, but it can be a little more difficult when you have large 100+ pound cages.

Have any of you sold a house while you have had birds? What did you do? What plan would you put in place if you found out tomorrow that you had to move (for whatever reason - job transfer, spouse, family, etc.)? Would you show the house with the bird cages in place? Would you board them? Would they stay with a friend or relative during that time?

I'm curious as to what others will say because I'm trying to think this through now even though we probably won't move for a few years.

[jessica313]

i honestly have no advice on this, but i would talk to Lisa B on this one im sure she could probably help you out

[tielfan]

I've always left my birds in their usual place, but I've never had anything bigger than a cockatiel. With more expensive birds I'd be concerned about the potential theft hazard, but there are other things in the house that are more inviting to thieves and don't have big strong beaks - like the computers and the jewelry box.

That article was primarily about potential buyers who are uncomfortable with the idea that a dog or cat has been roaming all over the house. As long as you eliminate the obvious signs that the bird has been all over the place, it might not even occur to the buyer that the bird ever gets out of the cage. Just as they wouldn't think that you would take a fish out of the tank and let it frolic through the house.

Just be glad you're not a snake owner! I think a lot of buyers would find that to be a big turnoff.

[Oscars Mom]

I dont think its practical to board or remove the birds cause it could takeawhile to sell your house. The last time i sold my house I had a mellow realtor who wasnt as demanding and "anti clutter "" as mostare. My neighbor 2 houses down and very similiar to mine realtor was a nazi. She made them store furniture so it would look more spaciousEtc. I did remove the dog for showings and air out the house before they came. I did nothing to the houseand sold it as is. It soldin 3 weeks for the asking price. She said that as long as a house is generally clean that was finebecause people know right away if their interested in a houseand its just personal taste and what feels rightto them. You could put them in carriers if you dont want to leave them on veiw.After the last move I wouldnt be such a slave about having everything always perfectwhen its listed. The process can be VERY LONG especially in a downturn .

[Ginich]

I am a Realtor who specializes in Canine and Avian Friendly properties. Two years ago, I both sold and found a new home for a couple with 26 birds from finches to a M2. The M2 and 2CAGs were in the house all the time. The others part of the time and they built an aviary on their screened porch. These 50-ish folks had to move for 2 reasons.

Their "country" neighborhood had grown up around them over 15 yrs and the husband developed lung cancer from chain smoking for years. The dander and clutter in the house was horrendous even though the house itself was a cute cottage type.There was also grey wall-wall carpet except for one room which had wood laminate. I needed to de-clutter and get the fids out of the main house because they were too much of a distraction. People only remembered the birds; not the size of the rooms or any of the features of the house. The Sellers were not happy to hear this-the birds were even less happy to be banished to cages on the porch everytime I needed to show the property. People could not imagine themselves living in the house with their furniture and you can just imagine what these folks furniture looked like after having 2 Greys and a too having the run of the living room/office. They had no dining area because of a BIG cabinet with fid stuff. They couldn't get enough stuff out of the house to make it show well because of his illness, her working double shifts to make up for the lack of income and free time taking care of fids. I got her maids, I got her unemployed friends to help pack, I found cheap painters and repairmen who would wait until closing to be paid-oh, did I mention the house was "Milk of Magnesia" pink and she thought that was a lovely color??

I finally arranged for a "bridge loan" so they could move into their new home with no neighbors on 3 sides and the next door neighbor has a macaw. It had a 10 X 60 screened and winterized porch and a fenced yard. I had the house professionally cleaned and air filtered, got rid of the big cabinet and the outside painted beige with white trim. It sold 2 months after they moved out to a single Dad and his daughter.

Even my Realtor friends who came out to preview the house at the luncheon I gave still ask me about the "Bird House". The Seller/Buyers are sooo much happier-the husband who also developed esophogeal cancer-is now in remission-they still have all their fids. Their new house has ceramic tile throughout. We are still friends and two years later, they are still thanking me for assertively pushing them into their new life.

The Realtor that offers to sell your home for the highest listing price is not necessarily the one that is going to get the job done. You may not like what the brutally honest one tells you, but it will make her/his job easier and get the house sold faster!

[luvmath]

I will be selling my house in a few months and the realtor had lots of suggestions. She never mentioned the birds. Since I only have two budgies in 1 cage I'm hoping this will be okay. We MUST sell our house so if I have to relocate them with a neighbor for a short period of time I guess I will.

[Cindy215]

Originally Posted by Ginich

I am a Realtor who specializes in Canine and Avian Friendly properties. Two years ago, I both sold and found a new home for a couple with 26 birds from finches to a M2. The M2 and 2CAGs were in the house all the time. The others part of the time and they built an aviary on their screened porch. These 50-ish folks had to move for 2 reasons.

Their "country" neighborhood had grown up around them over 15 yrs and the husband developed lung cancer from chain smoking for years. The dander and clutter in the house was horrendous even though the house itself was a cute cottage type.There was also grey wall-wall carpet except for one room which had wood laminate. I needed to de-clutter and get the fids out of the main house because they were too much of a distraction. People only remembered the birds; not the size of the rooms or any of the features of the house. The Sellers were not happy to hear this-the birds were even less happy to be banished to cages on the porch everytime I needed to show the property. People could not imagine themselves living in the house with their furniture and you can just imagine what these folks furniture looked like after having 2 Greys and a too having the run of the living room/office. They had no dining area because of a BIG cabinet with fid stuff. They couldn't get enough stuff out of the house to make it show well because of his illness, her working double shifts to make up for the lack of income and free time taking care of fids. I got her maids, I got her unemployed friends to help pack, I found cheap painters and repairmen who would wait until closing to be paid-oh, did I mention the house was "Milk of Magnesia" pink and she thought that was a lovely color??

I finally arranged for a "bridge loan" so they could move into their new home with no neighbors on 3 sides and the next door neighbor has a macaw. It had a 10 X 60 screened and winterized porch and a fenced yard. I had the house professionally cleaned and air filtered, got rid of the big cabinet and the outside painted beige with white trim. It sold 2 months after they moved out to a single Dad and his daughter.

Even my Realtor friends who came out to preview the house at the luncheon I gave still ask me about the "Bird House". The Seller/Buyers are sooo much happier-the husband who also developed esophogeal cancer-is now in remission-they still have all their fids. Their new house has ceramic tile throughout. We are still friends and two years later, they are still thanking me for assertively pushing them into their new life.

The Realtor that offers to sell your home for the highest listing price is not necessarily the one that is going to get the job done. You may not like what the brutally honest one tells you, but it will make her/his job easier and get the house sold faster!

This was an excellent post and I'm SO contacting you when my "dream move" to Florida happens!

And it's a good idea to specialize in animal friendlyhomes I'd think too.....

[qmichelle]

Gini, what a great story!!
Thanks for putting some thought into this, all!
Again, we probably won't move again for a few years, but it's something I think about! I've toyed with the idea that we might have to rent an apartment for a little while to take out some of our furniture and the birds. (We live in a 1000 sq ft condo. The ceiling in the bird room is swiss cheese... so many holes for swings, climbing nets, etc! All that would have to be hidden. lol!)

[Lisa B]

I recently had an agent from H*LL as Gini can tell ya!

I have had 3 houses in as many years. Army Life.. ..fun.

I agree with the fact that everyone only remembered the birds. They spent more time talking to the birds then looking through the house. However I did not have a place to put them, nor did we want a bridge loan with the way the market is in NJ...our luck, it would backfire on us.

I was always home when the properties were being shown. There was a sign on the bird room door "do not enter without permission from the owner"
The first house sold in less that 48 hours when the market was hot, and this last one sat for nearly the entire contract agreement, 6 months.

I too wish Gini was available to me however, I can say she was of help to me when I was at witts end and ready to strangle my old agent.

[Ginich]

Originally Posted by Cindy215

This was an excellent post and I'm SO contacting you when my "dream move" to Florida happens!

And it's a good idea to specialize in animal friendlyhomes I'd think too.....

I'll be happy to help you when you are ready, Cindy! Thanks for your kind words everyone. I've been doing this for many years and enjoy it, most of the time. Since becoming involved with Florida West Coast Avian Society, I realized how many folks need an agent who "gets it" about big dogs and multiple birds or just one noisy one, lol. You might want to check out the page of Avian Friendly Properties I always add to the BIRDIEBREAD e-newsletter for ideas. PM with your regular email to subscribe. Feel free to bounce real estate questions off me anytime.

Another time, I'll tell you about finding property for Kay Rosaire of the Ringling Bros Circus and her tigers, lions and bears-oh my! They play with toys like empty beer kegs, lol. Kay now has established the Big Cat Sanctuary for retired or unwanted lions & tigers. Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary