How to win by buying a stinky house

The real estate market has been tough for buyers for years now. In this article I will discuss how to increase your chances in finding a home and purchasing it without multiple offers by considering homes that have undesirable smells. I will also let you know what you can do to get rid of the smells to make your home more livable and down the road more marketable.

The Story of the Cat House that Wouldn’t Sell

Houses that smell terrible are the hardest to sell. Period. I once listed a house that was affordable with a location that was in demand in Lancaster, Ohio. The house ended up receiving 78 showings over the life of the listing. Each time the feedback was the same. “The smell was overpowering”… You see, the seller had a cat. The cat in protest had sprayed all around the front door. As most of you know, cat spray is right up there with skunk spray in the level of pungency.

After about 20 showings and that nasty feedback the client hired someone to come in and rip out the old carpet. I went in after that and took Kilz Odor Sealing Primer and coated the subfloor all over the front room of the house where the smell was coming from. Aired it out for a few days then had brand new carpet installed down over it. Finally after months on the market we put the home in contract for $30k less than the original list price. Ouch.

Why BUY a stinky house??

Buying a house that smells like cat piss probably sounds fucking terrible. However, it could be the KEY to buying a house for less than appraised value in a seller’s market where houses are getting multiple offers and only lasting a few days. Smells are one of the biggest impactors of the experience people have in a house while touring it. The perception of smells varies greatly from person to person. Some people have pet allergies so pet smells are going to be a mental red flag for them. Others subconsciously rank the house lower than other houses they have seen because of the smell, but have convinced themselves something else is a deal breaker for them. All of these things take a house that would get 10 offers without the smells to a house that sites on the market for a month longer than everything else.

Buying a stinky house almost always results in being able to purchase the home for at or near the list price and quite often allows you to get seller concessions such as seller paid closing costs. I have a client who couldn’t afford to buy a competitive house in the suburban neighborhood they wanted. We found one that smelled strongly of dog in that neighborhood. We were able to get it under list price with all of the buyer’s paid closing costs covered by the seller. That was spring of 20202 when everything first went bananas. Flash forward two years and they are sitting on $80k in equity.

Here are some things you can do to get pet smells out of a home

1.) Replaced the subfloor that was closest to the front door. This subfloor was damaged from how much the cat was peeing here.

2.) pulled all the trim all around the corners of the room and replaced it and repainted it.

3.) Checked the drywall around the lower parts of the walls and if needed, cut it out part way up the wall, replaced it and repainted it as well.

4.) Replace furnace filters with HEPA approved filters and replace them earlier than usual for the year following the pet smell treatment

5.) Finally, run an ozone machine to get out the remaining odor.

If you have allergies to animals, the methods I mentioned above just might not be able to do what you need to make the home safe for you or your family. However, if you are willing to hold your nose, quite literally, you may be able to scoop up a home in the neighborhood you want. With a little sweat equity you will be able to get the smells out and have a great home in the place you want to live.

[How to remove pet odors and stains]