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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

AIBU to say it's wrong for landlords to deny pets

46 replies

PankyE · 27/08/2018 16:33

We really wanted to get a cat. 2 DC have been asking for ages and I have PTSD and anxiety so a cat would be lovely for me too.
Landlord said flat no to any pets whatsoever.

Absolutely gutted. Should tenants have the right to pets? Some landlords don't even allow children and that's worse obviously.

We pay rent so should we be able to do what we want? Like in a council or housing association property.

OP posts:

PolkerrisBeach · 27/08/2018 16:36

Having a pet isn't a human right.

Pets damage properties. All you can do is appeal to your landlord and offer to pay a hefty deposit against any damage an animal might cause. But the landlord is still well within their rights to say no.

Finfintytint · 27/08/2018 16:37

We had this difficulty when we sold up and moved into rented whilst looking for a new house (twice).
We found that paying double the deposit and/or paying rent 6 months in advance helped the landlord to change their mind.
They just don’t want to be left with damage and smells associated with pets I suppose.

MirandaWest · 27/08/2018 16:37

Of course a landlord doesn’t have to let you keep a pet. It is rubbish but is just how it goes.

Holidayshopping · 27/08/2018 16:39

We pay rent so should we be able to do what we want?

Entitled, much?!

Your landlord owns the house you live in-you either abide by their rules or you find a different house to live in.

TroubledLichen · 27/08/2018 16:40

I live in the US and practically everywhere allows cats and small dogs, sometimes for an extra fee and/or increased security deposit. It makes me really sad that the UK isn’t the same. We rent out our UK home out and our current tenants don’t have pets but I’d be fine with it if they wanted to get one.

Frosty6611 · 27/08/2018 16:40

i had a cat in the last property I lived in a few years ago. I had to pay double the deposit and he also added a new clause into the lease which I had to sign.
I haven’t been allowed a pet in my current place as he’s worried about animals doing the toilet on the carpet or floorboards and the smell can be difficult to get rid of

Nightmanagerfan · 27/08/2018 16:42

It’s not always up to the landlord. We own our flat but our lease prohibits all pets - if I rented it out I’d be pretty pissed off if the tenants got a pet. Not everyone keeps their pets cleanly either.

GrowThroughWhatYouGoThrough · 27/08/2018 16:43

I think yabu I refused cats in my rental property as I'm allergic to them.

PatriciaHolm · 27/08/2018 16:45

We pay rent so should we be able to do what we want? Like in a council or housing association property.

Eh? You can't "do what you want* in those either. Plenty have regulations about pets.

You can ask again, and reassure that you'll make good any damage etc. But you have to abide by their decision.

Lindy2 · 27/08/2018 16:46

I allowed a tenant to have a small dog. It stank the whole flat out by wèeing all over the carpets. The tenant then left the property with no notice to avoid paying to put right the mess he had made.
The 1 month rent deposit I had only covered about half of the cleaning costs.
He's the only tenant who caused me problems in over 15 years of being a landlord. Lesson learnt and no more dogs in my property ever again.

alefor12 · 27/08/2018 16:49

Another reason to not allow it is that it may mean others won't rent there in the future. I have a severe allergy to both cats and dogs and wouldn't be able to live somewhere that had had one there previously. I can understand it's annoying though

TheConquestOfHappiness · 27/08/2018 16:50

I think it’s inhuman.

ScreamingValenta · 27/08/2018 16:53

As a pet-owner, I can see the landlord's point of view, I'm afraid. Pets do create mess and smell and can damage furniture and fittings. One of my cats scratched a section of wallpaper off the landing in my last house.

Londoner999 · 27/08/2018 16:54

A previous tenant asked us if their dogs could move in as a goodwill guesture as it wasn't in the tenancy agreement. What we later learned is that they didn't take their two dogs for regular walks and instead used the back garden as a dog latrine. We had to returf the whole garden. That was a real lesson for us - not everyone with a pet is responsible and landlords shouldn't have to foot the bill for the mess.

YABU.

IsTheRainEverComingBack · 27/08/2018 16:55

I rent with cats. They damage carpet no matter what I do. I’m happy to pay an extra deposit for them to cover that potential damage and I completely understand why landlords would say no.

premiertav · 27/08/2018 16:57

Absolutely gutted. Should tenants have the right to pets?

No.

KickAssAngel · 27/08/2018 17:02

I'm a landlady of a small flat - the co. that own the freehold won't let us have pets in there. If we do allow/have pets (many flats are owner occupier) then there's a form to fill in, accepting all responsibility for any/all mess & damage, including anything to other flats. So - if a dog became incontinent & weed everywhere, then I could end up paying to fix my and the underneath flat. I have to fill that form in & accept the responsibility for myself, then hope that the tenant keeps to their contract of leaving the property in good repair if there's any mess or damage.

It's just too risky tbh. And then there's insurance. There's v. little choice in insurance contracts for rented properties, and they all say things like no pets, no benefits etc.

That flat is my entire savings/pension etc (I live abroad & may want to return to the UK at some point) so don't want to spend thousands to do repairs.

But I do wish I could let tenants have pets - it would be nice for them, and it is their home. I'm just not willing to take on the risk.

JackReacherReader · 27/08/2018 17:02

We have a dog and rent. I found that if it didn't specify no pets then I'd ring and ask. Not many said yes but you just move on to the next one. One letting agent told me I was a twat for even asking and they have a no pets policy so I completely ignored every house with that letting agent but then they rang to ask about my housing needs so I told them to take me off their database immediately.

In the end we found a lovely house and the landlord doesn't care about pets, as the previous tenants had 4 (!) labradors and a gsd so the house was a bit of a state. Our little border mix is nothing to that. Just offer more of a deposit and get it cleaned after wards. I'm sure that some tenants do take the piss, the stair carpets have been chewed and the front door scratched within an inch of its life, so I've taken photos to make sure we don't get penalised for that!

Magnussen · 27/08/2018 17:06

You can do what you like when you've bought your own property op

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 27/08/2018 17:07

I haven’t heard of a housing association that lets you do whatever you like in their property to be honest.

Of course landlords should be able to decide what risks they are willing to take on and which they aren’t. If it’s a leasehold property it’s not even necessarily their choice.

Methe · 27/08/2018 17:10

You want to be able to treat a house like you own it then buy one yourself.

newmumwithquestions · 27/08/2018 17:14

I allowed a cat on the understanding that carpets would be cleaned at the end of the tenancy and any damage was paid for (there wasn’t any).

I didn’t allow a small dog as I let a flat and didn’t want my neighbours bothered by barking.

If a tenant had demanded that it was their right to have a pet I’d have said no out of principle!

RabbitsAreTasty · 27/08/2018 17:15

If you know you are not allowed pets why didn't you tell your children. Kind of mean to let them keep hoping they can have something they definitely can't have.

Have you tried ringing around some lettings agencies to ask about renting somewhere that does allow cats?

kk66 · 27/08/2018 17:16

We've had tenants with pets who have been brilliant at protecting/putting right any damage caused (eg completely re-fencing the garden before leaving) and ones that were the complete opposite (cat clawed various carpets around doors - said tenant actually maintained that the carpets were defective - then did a runner. The deposit barely touched the damage). Since then it's a triple deposit or no pet policy.

user1483387154 · 27/08/2018 17:19

Yabu. As most posters have said the damage and extra costs at end of tenancy can be huge.

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