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Original poster

landlord and pets - unfair?

107 replies

andreaxo · 24/10/2015 22:12

I rent and have been doing so for the past 7 months (the same house), when I moved in I was pregnant and had 2 rabbits, asked if rabbits could come too, landlord agreed.
I am a good tenant, try not to moan about things unless they become a big issue which so far has been 1 thing (the front door sticking) the landlord sends his son to do repairs as they don't live around here.
A week ago I decided I would like a kitten and did the right thing by asking the agent who then emailed the landlord to ask for permission, I got an email 3 days later saying 'unfortunately the landlord has declined your request, so a no to the cat im afraid' I feel really upset by this, I always Co operate and am more than happy to help them when they need to come round to inspect and ask me to sign things. I've even stained the woodwork in the living room which includes all skirting boards, fire surround and doors (with permission) whilst 8 months pregnant and have made the house look better. The radiator in my bedroom which is quite large does not work no matter how many times I bleed it and I've not complained as didn't want to make a fuss but now he's declined my cat and not even given me a reason I have complained as I have a newborn that sleeps with me and last night had to have 3 blankets on as it was so cold.
I just feel it's unfair he didn't give a reason, didn't offer me the option of paying a higher bond or a new term in the contract - I feel I'm a good tenant which is hard to come by as the house was up for rent months before I rented it as he could not find a tenant and was on the verge of selling the property.

I also rent unfurnished, the only thing that's in the property which belong to him are the carpets (one is out of a bedroom in the living room and blinds) the doors have seen better days and one has a huge crack in it and they have replaced 2 panels with plywood in one door which looked ridiculous until I've stained it and made it look less obvious.
I'm open to anyone's opinions on whether I am being unreasonable etc
Thanks

OP posts:

SoupDragon · 26/10/2015 10:46

Mu bloody cat has ruined several carpets by clawing them and a couple of rugs too. I would be pissed off if I were a landlord and a cat did what kne has done.

SoupDragon · 26/10/2015 10:48

And fleamageddon when we arrived home from a two week holiday when the house had been pet free was truly horrendous. And yes, the cat (and dog) had supposedly been treated for fleas.

cruikshank · 26/10/2015 17:56

There are quite a few on here who would clearly be liars, frauds, and non-payers.

I think you need to go back to KS2 and learn deduction and inference more thoroughly, specialone. It doesn't just mean 'making shit up to suit yourself'.

Why do people have to make this relationship so personal?

Err, maybe because it involves their home?

imwithspud · 26/10/2015 18:15

There are quite a few on here who would clearly be liars, frauds, and non-payers.

How did you come to that conclusion?

suzannecaravaggio · 26/10/2015 18:30

If I was a landlord I'd probably have no pets in the contract

Original poster

andreaxo · 26/10/2015 19:25

well this thread escalated quickly
Just to update, the radiator is getting fixed, the kitten is well cared for at my mums and Im certainly not pissed off, more disappointed in the lack of trust which seems to be a widespread problem between LL and tenants.

Just to irritate various people further/open another can of worms enquire do you think I should ask again about the kitten if I offer to pay for any damage/cleaning required when i leave? I rent unfurnished, all furniture is my own btw.

OP posts:

SweetAdeline · 26/10/2015 19:40

The problem is that legally the landlord cannot hold you to that. He can only withhold what the deposit scheme lets him and these days it's heavily weighted towards the tenant. He'd have to take you at your word and his willingness to do that will depend on how trustworthy previous tenants have been.

charlietheo · 26/10/2015 19:59

yes thats quite understandable sweetadeline. I think the government should make a law which makes it easier for landlords to enforce payment for pet damage, then LL may reconsider renting to tenants with pets/allowing pets.

gamerchick · 26/10/2015 20:05

Was wondering that mesel spud, I also want to know where these free houses are I keep hearing about

Rinceoir · 26/10/2015 20:14

Having spent most of my adult life renting in Ireland I can categorically say that it is a good thing that landlords cannot legally hold the deposit. I have on one occasion had to fight for 4 months to get my deposit back after vacating an apartment at the end of the lease, leaving it in perfect condition, and professionally cleaned. The landlord told me that he resented giving back the deposit when the rent I paid didn't cover the mortgage! Equally I've had wonderful landlords who returned deposits straight away but it's always a concern when handing money to someone when they hold all the power.

imwithspud · 26/10/2015 20:58

I agree the deposit scheme is a good thing and is also fair.

That said we still had to badger our previous landlord/letting agent over the course of a few weeks in order to get it back but if we didn't we knew that we could take it further if need be.

Hoppinggreen · 26/10/2015 21:20

I used to rent out a property and allowed my tenants to have a cat - seriously regretted it .

IShouldBeSoLurky · 26/10/2015 21:42

The deposit scheme is an excellent thing. LLs in the past used their tenants' deposits to pay the costs of maintaining their properties or didn't maintain them and kept the deposit anyway.

Katarzyna79 · 26/10/2015 21:59

ive had 6 landlords only one landlord was a problem, the property had minor mould which we highlighted before moving in. He never fixed it we would bleach it it would return. On leaving he decided he was going to keep our deposit, took him through solicitors he promptly paid back our deposit. If I had the money for a huge family home I wouldn't be renting. That experience left me bitter because we always keep properties impeccable and pay out of our pockets to maintain it.

The other landlords to date have been super. I would still prefer my own home because moving with so much luggage is difficult, but a 5 bedroom as a minimum and a decent garden is inconceivable it would be at least half a million its insane.

Ill have to suck it up until my kids are old enough to move out, then I can perhaps afford a small cottage for myself.

I don't want to be seen as demonising all landlords because 5 out of 6 ive had were great no problems. the best landlords were in Scotland though sorry to say they were not in England I just though id try and create a further war sicne theres one between landlords and tenants so far lol

SuburbanRhonda · 27/10/2015 09:18

do you think I should ask again about the kitten if I offer to pay for any damage/cleaning required

Depends how much you want to piss him off, bearing in mind that he has quite clearly stated that he will not allow a cat in his property.

Needmoresleep · 27/10/2015 12:14

I recently had tenants who kepts two cats without permission. The head lease does not allow animals and so both I and the agent were clear from the outset and in the lease that no animals would be allowed.

Their attitude, when discovered, was that they chose not to tell me as they considered me unreasonable in imposing this condition. They had initially taken the flat on a a short term 6 month winter let as I had planned to use it over the summer. When I came to renew I increased the rent to market rent (indeed still 15% less than I am getting a year later) which they decided was vindictive, and so left.

Problems were:

Allergies. I get a bit of mild hay fever but was honestly sneezing away in a flat with two house cats who never went out.
Quite a lot of wear and tear on the carpet where the cats have scratched.
Part of a nice kitchen floor near the litter tray stained green.

Honestly even if I had been happy it would not have been worth in in terms of damage to my property.

cruikshank · 27/10/2015 20:17

The problem is that legally the landlord cannot hold you to that. He can only withhold what the deposit scheme lets him and these days it's heavily weighted towards the tenant.

This is such horseshite that I don't even know where to start with it. A landlord can ask for as much deposit as s/he wants. If the tenant agrees to pay it, all fine and dandy. At the end of the term, the landlord can deduct any expenses incurred by tenant's damage. Again, all fine and dandy. The only way that the law is 'heavily weighted towards the tenant' is that the landlord has to prove they have actually incurred a cost, and tbh if I were part of a class of people who have been proved so untrustworthy to abide by normal contract law that they had to have a whole statutory regulation drafted to deal with them and three (in England - don't know about Scotland) statutory schemes set up, financed and staffed just in order to look after the money that they were routinely misusing and misappropriating, I would stfu about things being weighted against me.

imwithspud · 27/10/2015 20:34

Well said CruikShank.

wowfudge · 27/10/2015 21:29

Landlords are a class of people who are untrustworthy? Jeez. What a gem you are.

specialsubject · 27/10/2015 21:46

everyone is subject to such laws.

post reported. It is half-term, remember.

cruikshank · 27/10/2015 21:56

No. Not everyone is subject to such laws. Normal contract law applies to deposits, returns and deductions in many other situations. Normal contract law also used to apply to landlord/tenant matters as well. However, so many tenants were having to have recourse to court for matters that should never have got that far, and were clogging said courts up and taking up so much time and money and resources just in order to get that which was rightfully theirs that parliament (which, let's face it, is largely populated by people who are landlords/land-owners themselves and therefore not particularly inclined to legislate on the matter) decided to stamp down on what was recognised as pretty much wide scale abuse and appoint statutory bodies to ensure that monies were properly returned in a timely fashion. Which is indication that landlords, as a class, cannot be trusted to regulate themselves.

SeveredHeadsDragOnTheFloor · 27/10/2015 21:59

Which is indication that landlords, as a class, cannot be trusted to regulate themselves.

Landlords are not a class.
They are not a homogenous group.
It's like saying all tenants are arses on the basis of the few bad ones.

wowfudge · 27/10/2015 22:02

Quite. A load of offensive, stereotyping codswallop.

cruikshank · 27/10/2015 22:07

It really isn't, because it wasn't just a 'few bad ones'. Landlords were routinely not returning deposit monies. This became a problem because tenants were having to pursue claims through courts because of breach of contract, on a massive scale, and winning. It was happening in a sufficient number of cases for parliament to have to step in and provide their own regulatory schemes. If a group of people behaves in such a way as to provoke a legislative change in order to regulate their activities , then I think it is safe to talk about them as a group.

cruikshank · 27/10/2015 22:08

And now you're going to go on about 'offensive' and 'lovely landlords' and 'under market rents' etc. Blah.

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