Couple with 14 cats wants to sell property for top market value, relator seeks advice on how to inform them that the bad cat odors are deterring potential buyers: ‘[They’ve] ruined their resale value'

Having property is a huge flex these days. It's a fantastic investment that provides pretty good financial security. The thing about owning property is that you have to take care of it. Even if it's just land, you still have to maintain that land. Sure, you can still sell land or a home that is in completely disarray, but the value is going to be way lower than its potential. One extremely difficult issue that relators come across a lot are excessive pet owners trying to sell. Cats especially, because cat urine has a chemical in it that is very unpleasantly potent and very very difficult to get rid of. It can seep into the floorboards and ruin them—the only option then is to remove them and start from scratch. 

So when this relator started working on a property with 14 cats, she knew she was in trouble. Though she is new to real estate and this is only her second house, it didn't take years of experience to smell how big of an issues this was going to be. Every potential buyer who has come to look at the place has said they immediately decided not to buy due to the smell. She has tried to convey this to the sellers, but they still want to sell at the higher end of the market value. Now the relator goes to Reddit to seek advice.