No pets!

[Skeppers]

We are currently looking to move house to a larger (rented) property as I am almost 5 months pregnant.

We've found a number of houses we really like, but have been told- in no uncertain terms- that there is a no pets policy. We have been renting our current house for 10 years with our cat. He hasn't caused one bit of damage- doesn't scratch, wee, etc. During the day when we're at work he's outside and in the evenings he lies next to the fire with us in the lounge. We're loathe to rehome him as he's getting on a bit (nearly 13) and he's well and truly part of the family. Does anyone have any tips as to how we could possibly negotiate this with potential landlords? As far as I'm concerned it makes no sense that they're not happy to have a cat in the house, but they're happy to have a baby/toddler which no doubt has the potential to make far more noise, draw on walls, etc.!

Do any landlords have any advice?

Totally understand your pain, we have cats and have had to look for 'normal' people who are only renting one property and understand family life, not landlords who have massive portfolios and just see $$$.

The last property we lived in in the UK was a one of these portfolio type and whether people think it's right or wrong, we asked the estate agents "would they be OK with cats" and to my surprise she said cats are fine, dogs are most certainly not. I made sure when she confirmed there was an "s" on the end, she never asked how many and I never told them we have 9 cats LOL.

9 cats!! Love it!!

Just re-read what I'd written and it sounds a little a snobbish, just to be clear the two properties we'd lived in before, the first knew we had 3, and then came round and played with the 10 kittens we ended up with, and knew we'd kept 3.

The next property knew we had 6, and also knew they all went out, they also knew about the 2 litters of kittens we had and saw our numbers increase to 10 and go down to 9. Neither of these people had cats or indeed pets, but they were assured our cats were not house wreckers, and they were normal people and just understood.

The next property and our last in the UK was unfortunately an unforeseen and unavoidable move 5 months before we emigrated. Our requirements of a new house were very limiting and the house we moved in to was an absolute hole which the landlord refused to improve before we moved into, it was amidst this they said yes to cats, and given his attitude towards the repair of the house, why I didn't specify how many we had. I'm sure if they had known how many we would have been turned down.

Skeppers .no chance of help to buy? DSS and fiancee are just buying through this? I have one property that I have just lovingly renovated after last tenants but I am taking someone with two dogs!Maybe I am too soft.

We have a dog and rent (have rented 5 different properties since we had him, about to move to our 6th!).

We went to all the letting agents in the area and asked them to let us know as soon as a property came up that accepted pets. We offered additional deposit, said we'd have the carpets cleaned on leaving and would obviously put right any damage he caused (not that he causes any). We usually find that landlords who have refurbished the properties to let them don't want pets (new cream carpets etc) but others are fine. Incidentally I've heard a lot of landlords say they prefer dogs to cats as cats can scratch/damage carpets etc.

Oh it always seems to help that I tell them I'm a SAHM so he's rarely in the property on his own (we take him to most places with us!) so make it clear the cat will be outside all day.

We have two cats, and have rented four different flats over the past six years.

• Ignore generic disclaimers about not taking pets.
• When you're interested in a property, tell the letting agent/landlord how much you like it, and explain that you have this very quiet, very old cat who has lived, without causing damage, in rental properties before. The LL is probably imagining a 300lb Bengalese tiger with incontinence issues. Scale it down until your cat sounds like a mildly-animate cushion.
• Volunteer (if possible) to pay a slightly larger deposit; we put up 8 weeks, instead of the standard 6. If you're the one to suggest this, it shows goodwill, confidence in your cat-wrangling skills, and (always attractive) deep pockets. We also suggest a clause about professional carpet/upholstery cleaning at check-out, just for 'peace of mind'; they'll probably ask for it anyway, but it looks better if you volunteer.

IME, showing that you understand the LL's concerns, and being polite, businesslike and proactive about it, will do the job about 75% of the time. The other 25% usually come down to allergies or lease restrictions. The only property we've had which fell through, at the last minute, due to the cats, was an American one; when we got the contract to sign, it stipulated they had to be declawed. That was one goodwill gesture too far.

And don't get me started on agency/referencing fees

Oh and my final observation... My DH is very very well spoken (much more so than me, I'm common ) and we seem to get a much better response when he goes in to talk to the letting agents in his work suit than I do with my unwashed hair and scruffy clothes due to trying to get out of the house with a toddler who thinks sleep is for wimps. Might be total coincidence but I always imagine the letting agent phoning the landlord saying 'an extremely smart, polite gentleman wants to know if he can keep a dog in the property' .

I know you won't lie,but its been what I've done in the padt and would do again.
Can't see much option other than finding a rental where animals are allowed,or rehoming the pet -the first of which being the obvious starter choice if one can be found,the second not being an option in my view for me.

No pets seems to be the standard line when a property is advertised. Often it is never mentioned again.

I've had pets at rental properties when they weren't supposed to officially be there and had no problems even when the lardlord came round.

Play it by ear.

Ha ha, GotTo- it's the opposite in our case! I tend to be the more 'professional' and articulate in our relationship; I usually deal with them on the phone then DH (because he works nearer to the location where we're looking) rocks up for viewings in his jeans and hoodie asking about where he can put his drum kit!

(It's an electronic drum kit you can use with headphones in so not as loud as a normal one!)

(He's also a civil servant and works in IT so they don't have 'business dress'!)

We did look at help to buy in our area, but all the schemes are attached to new build homes which start at £200k which mean that- although we'd get help with the deposit- the monthly mortgage repayments, on top of paying back the government loan- mean that it's far more than we're comfortable paying.

We live in quite an affluent area in Hampshire, hence the high prices. It's a double edged sword. It's a nice place to live, but also has some areas of real poverty and deprivation locally- particularly nearer the big cities- which sadly also have high crime and significant social issues. We'd only realistically be able to afford to buy in these areas. I'd rather rent a nicer house in a nicer area than buy a house in a 'rough' area. If this makes me sound like a snob, I don't care. I grew up on a council estate and my parents worked hard to get my siblings and I out of there so I don't want to take a step backwards!

Plus all my friends/family/support network are around here and, especially with a baby in the way, this is more important to me than bricks and mortar at the mo.

Phew! A little grievance about pets has sent me off on one again!

(Sorry just noticed my awful punctuation in the above post...)

I've rented 3 properties over the past 4 years in S/W London/Surrey. I have a cat. I have found that it has limited the available properties to me (plus adding in the fact that I need ground floor properties or first floorwith private access so that cat can get out) but I have always managed to find somewhere including a lovely flat where initially the OCD LL declined pets. When no one took the property we were offered it, by that stage we were able to negotiate £150 a month less rent(!)

I generally approach letting agents of unfurnished properties which do not have carpet. It is harder for them to argue any risk of damage as any scratching will most likely be on my furniture and fleas/fur don't last long on laminate/floorboards. Also approach properties which have been available for a while; LL start getting desperate and willing to compromise.

I've never had to pay an extra deposit nor have I offered it or to pay for cleaning. I do however drop in a lot that I am a solicitor (people think this means I am responsible , this seems to help me I think), that I have the miele pet vacuum (it's awesome!) and that the cat is an outdoor cat.

Good luck!