There’s a Pub and a Horse Barn-But It’s a Kangaroo Named Irwin That Has Home Buyers Talking

Three real-estate agents recall deals where a pet turned out to be a major selling point

Q: Have you ever worked on a deal where a pet was conveyed along with the home?

Andrew Manning, real-estate agent at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties, Sherman Oaks, Calif. 

In May 1989, I worked with buyers of a two-bedroom, Spanish-style home in the Silverlake neighborhood of Los Angeles that sold for $375,000, although it would be worth about $2.1 million today. The home, which was built in 1933, still had its original owner, and she was selling because she was moving into an assisted-living facility. The owner had an unusual pet—an 80-year-old, 4-foot-long giant tortoise named Jumby, who lived in a custom enclosure with a metal roof, a pond and a waterfall in the backyard. The owner’s biggest concern was for Jumby to have a good home and be well taken care of. There were several offers for the property, but my buyers were the successful bidders because we wrote Jumby into the deal. They were attorneys and animal activists who had their own menagerie, including chickens and rabbits, so they were cool about adopting Jumby. They even got him a companion tortoise, a young male, so he wouldn’t be alone. Jumby lived a full life and passed peacefully at almost 90 years old.

Renay Cohen, real-estate agent at Douglas Elliman Real Estate, The Woodlands, Texas 

In October 2022, I listed a four-bedroom country estate on just under 4 acres in Montgomery, Texas, a suburb of Houston. The home was fully fenced and included a barn with two stalls. The property was home to an elderly quarter horse that the sellers had owned since their daughter was young, and it had been her cherished companion through the years and participated with her in various equestrian events. The horse was 26, and the homeowner wanted it to live out its days in a familiar and comfortable space. Coincidentally, the buyers had two donkeys that they rescued, and the seller thought it would be the perfect scenario if the buyers agreed to keep their horse so it would have companionship. Ironically, the two donkeys arrived before the buyers took possession, and the seller integrated the donkeys with the horse and took care of them until the buyers arrived. The buyers also brought eight chickens and some koi fish from their home in California, and they were excited about the horse being there. We closed on the property in March 2023, for $920,000, and the horse is doing well and is now best friends with the donkeys. Previously, the seller had been concerned that the horse wasn’t going to make it, but it was obviously a match made in heaven.