Renting a property with a pet...

[Prerapher]

In my case it's a dog.
I'm trying to find rented property but I'm constantly coming up against the NO PETS clause in just about every property description I read.

My dog is a clean, well behaved and quiet and has never damaged anything in her life, probably a better bet than a lot of people out there 😂

Could anyone who is (or ever has been in this situation) please advise how I might be able to deal with it, I would even be prepared to pay extra.

Rather than relying upon the description ask if you can have a pet and offer a additional payment. Good luck.

You say you would be prepared to pay extra. But have you? Or you could offer a bigger deposit? I'm not sure how that would work. But I'd have thought half a month's rent would cover any extra carpet cleaning. Fur does linger. I know this because I was still finding my former dog's fur months after he died.

When we viewed our current home (nearly 17 years ago) the LL said no pets. We said, "Ah, we have two dogs", he shrugged and said OK. It's worth asking if the property is apparently suitable for your pet. So, our home is a detached rural farmhouse, might not work in a top floor bijou one bed city centre flat.

I spoke to the rental agent and asked them to ask the landlord if he'd accept my cat and dog, he did, without charging any more.

I'd ignore descriptions that say "no pets" and ask the LL or agent. You might need to pay a slightly bigger deposit and/or additional pet clean when leaving the property.

I'm a landlord who allows a dog (and a cat, although I advise against this as house is near a busy road, previous tenants cat was killed).

Read the advice on the dogs trust "lets with pets" site. I used their guidance for additional clauses in tenancy agreement.

The way I look at it is that the quickest way to loose money as a landlord is gaps between tenants/property turn around. So if I'm one of the few landlord allowing a dog then my tenants will be less likely to move on quickly as they will find it hard to find another suitable rental property, therefore I lose less money.

I charge a larger deposit and expect carpets to be shampooed at the end of a tenancy (or would take money from deposit to cover this).

Unfortunately at the moment where there is a shortage of rental properties, landlords can be picky, and as it is a business they will take the people who look like the easiest/safest tenants in paper. So, no pets, no benefits, full time working (more likely to afford rent increases and spend less time at home causing wear and tear), etc.

I am a landlord and accept pets - but it depends on the pet! A lot of people put 'no pets' but may allow one small one

Regarding extra deposit, this used to be a good way to approach but the govt changed the rules so max deposit now is 5 weeks' rent so this is not much more than a standard month and not worth it for some

Some pets are fine, others wreck the floors with scrabbling and wee (although I blame the owners, not the pets!) and there is always more cleaning required after a pet has been in to get it to a state where there is zero smell and it would be ok for any new tenants with allergies

www.letswithpets.org.uk/find-a-pet-friendly-property/find-a-pet-friendly-property
Try these

Bear in mind that most leasehold properties ban pets in the headlease so even if the owner is personally amenable their own hands are tied. If you are looking at flats then this may be an issue.

in addition paying an extra deposit is now outlawed - max deposit is 5 weeks rent by law (assuming England).

it’s a really big issue but (and I say this as a dog owner) don’t let a pet make you homeless. It’s harsh I know but reality.

Legally they aren’t allowed to do a
blanket ban of no pets.

They have to do a case by case basis and explain why with a proper valid case.

The law was changed last year to this

Sadly this isn’t true - it was proposed as a law but not (yet) passed.

The current template tenancy contract published by the government also has the wording but it’s not compulsory to use it (and I understand it’s not widely used).

I have a house I let out. Never been asked about pets but I would consider a hamster. The house next door used to leave their dog in the house all day while they worked. The kitchen doors were destroyed by scratching. It was awful and unfortunately bad pet owners are widespread. It’s difficult to tell a responsible one from a negligent one.

We need to get landlords banned from not allowing pets and children. Completely unacceptable. If your renting out a property then for the duration of the rental the property is the tenants home and the landlord should have absolutely no right to have any opinion or say over how tenants live their lives.

The more LLs' hands are tied the more they will sell up and the more there will be a lack of rental properties. Driving rents up. Look around - it's happening already.

You might have better luck with a private landlord. Mine allows dogs and I have 2 large, very well behaved dogs. I live alone with my young DC in a crappy area and they make us feel safer. Not a clue what I'd do if my LL every sold up and we had to leave.

Our agents' particulars on lettings a few years back said no pets as standard. When we viewed and offered on what became our then rented home we immediately asked if our pets would be allowed- 1 small dog and 2 scouse cats. They agreed and the contract was changed to mention this. So it's worth an ask. Good luck

HOUSE CATS! HOUSE! (Although bizarrely ironic as I do live in Liverpool. Cats are through-and-through Lancastrian though, as am I!)

The reason LL don't want pet and children is because of the damage left behind at the end of tenancy . They have to foot the bill as much as they try and presue the tenant most of the time LL has to pay .

I kept asking when I was looking for a rental. I said that our DCats were older, tame and trained. Some said a flat out no but quite a few were ok with it. For this apartment I offered pet rent and my landlord has been fine.

Thank you to everyone for all your opinions and suggestions, it's certainly given me a lot to think about.

Is it just you and the dog? I have dogs and cats and am thinking of renting out part of house in next few years when my children have left and I have started looking on spare room site to see who is out there. When it comes to it I'd rather get someone in who has a pet so they don't mind living with mine!

Myself and DH have a few rentals. Im surprised at the number of people saying here that the advert said "no pets"and then the LL allowed it. We, and most others I know do have a blanket no let's rule. The simple reason is the risk of damage and higher wear and tear. This includes usually the doggy smell that really does out off future prospective tenants. Therefore after each tenancy it is a full redecorate and deep clean of the carpets which simply is not viable.

In the early days of renting we allowed pets on a couple of occasions and had all the tripe of "my dog has never damaged anything" etc but in reality they all have incontinent phases if poorly and the house takes on "that smell". Hence we ban them now and are clear that if they acquire an animal after the tenancy start, they will receive notice.

All our tenants love the high standard of the properties, standard of decor and most comment that they like that it hasn't had pets in.

In todays rental market, it is a lot more difficult to find rentals that allow pets. The ones that do, tend to be somewhat "down market"

I’m the same as @MarieG10 we don’t allow pets in any of our properties for the exact reasons she’s outlined.

We rented temporarily with three cats for a year, last year- we found that the best approach was to talk to the estate agent directly rather than just look for the adverts. Build confidence: if you come across as responsible and agree to pay for any damage and return it to the state you found it in (as you should anyway as tenants) they will be happier.

If you can afford it maybe ask if they would be happy to accept extra a month to include the dog? Another £10 or £20 extra will help to ease any concerns!

Generally we found that property companies/ landlords with several houses were more relaxed/ more amenable to accepting pets as they had usually already done it before or knew that in the scheme of things its not a major problem.

@Dobbysgotthesocks
You seem to forget that the landlord owns the property. I’ve had great tenants mostly. I don’t want the expense of pets scratching carpets and wood floors. It might be seen as wear and tear and folks living their lives but it’s at my expense. My houses had small gardens. They were not suitable for a dog. They didn’t have cat flaps. Few cats live inside. I’ve said no pets due to the destruction I saw next door. It’s very difficult to get money from tenants to pay for mess. They dispute it and it takes forever with photos needed etc.

I prefer an agent to handle the letting and let them do the photos and inspections. But landlords do have very tight legislation concerning tenants and their rights. I’ve sold one property and I’ll be selling my other one when the tenants leave. It is too much hassle unless it’s your business. For me, other investments can make more money.