Sydney, Sept 19: Real estate agents are increasingly using ‘staging pets’ in property listing photos to appeal to animal-loving buyers, according to research by Money.com.au.
The trend is gaining traction as nearly 70 per cent of Australian households now own a pet, making pet-friendly living spaces a top priority for many buyers.
Canberra agent Catherine Halloran is a leading proponent of the approach, regularly featuring her French bulldog, Rollo, in property listings.
She believes that incorporating pets in photos makes homes more memorable and helps buyers visualize their own pets in the space.
The demand for pet-friendly homes is on the rise, with Money.com.au’s analysis showing 3,428 properties listed under the ‘pet-friendly’ filter on realestate.com.au, accounting for nearly 2 per cent of all national listings.
Queensland leads the way with 1,345 such properties, followed by New South Wales with 1,139, and Victoria with 509.
Domain also reflects this trend, with 5,375 properties across Australia listed as pet-friendly.
New South Wales tops the list with 5,378 listings, while Victoria and Queensland follow closely behind.
Lucy Yang, a new homeowner in ACT, emphasized the appeal of seeing pets in listings when searching for her four-bedroom home.
She explained that it helped her imagine her pets thriving in the property, particularly when features like a dog-proof backyard were already in place.
ALX Creative Media photographer Alexandra Wetzel noted that the use of pets in real estate marketing is becoming more common, especially for properties with larger yards or rural settings. She pointed out that featuring animals can showcase specific property features, like equestrian facilities, and enhance emotional connections with buyers.
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