Considering not telling a landlord I have a cat.

[Mirrors123]

Please don't be mean, I am in pieces about potentially having to give up my beloved rescue cat.

I really need to move house. Buying is not an option for me so I have to rent. I have been looking for months and cannot find a single property that allows pets. I have one, well trained indoor cat.

Would it be a really stupid idea to just not tell the landlord and hope for the best? What would be the consequences if a landlord found out?

Helpful suggestions only please, the alternative is giving up my rescue cat who absolutely hated the shelter. Thank you x

We've been in our rented house for four years and have two cats. There's a cat flap, but when we got the contract to sign it clearly stated no pets.

So there's a comedic faff 3 times a year where we clean up a bit more than usual, hide the bowls and food, one of us takes the cats on a jaunt in the car and the other breezily shows the agent around, then texts when the coast is clear. Harder if an indoor cat though.

To thecatneuterer,

I wish you was my landlady cos you know what you're talking about when it comes to the law & cats.

I've read all the posts about mirrors situation & I'm in a similar situation.

thecatneuterer, can I have some advice please?

I've been in my flat for 4 months so far. Tenancy agreement ends just after Christmas (6 months contract). I got 2 cats & had them in the flat with me. My LL turned up unexpectedly, walked into my garden at end of August & was upset to see me with one of my cats through the window. I apologised & offered him pet deposit so he said he'd think bout it.

Sorry, wasn't finished & pressed wrong button as I'm new on this site.

3 weeks later, I got an email to say I've breached the lease by having the cat there & that the tenants' son living in 1st floor flat is allergic to cats & dogs. But when I asked the tenant if okay with me having the cat, she said it was fine. Never mentioned the allergy so I was unaware. LL only gave me 2 days to make a decision bout my cats then issued me with a section 8 & gave me a month to leave property by 30th September.

I had to take my cats back to my mom's which is difficult on me cos she forgets to feed them biscuits, put water down etc. I'm very good at doing all that before I go to work. The cats & I are finding it hard.

I'm still in the property now without the cats & LL says he still wants me out cos he don't trust I won't bring them back to the flat. I find it strange LL haven't served me with papers from the Court as of yet so I don't know what all this means. I'm still going to continue my search to find somewhere else.

LL have dogs living with him & he says he's a big animal lover but it's his wife's decision. They're ignoring the fact I pay the rent on time & I'm a good tenant. However, upstairs is very noisy by banging stuff around & tenant's boyfriend smokes pot. I can smell it as I open my front door. But I can't report it cos the LL don't like me & won't believe me anyway.

I really want to bring my cats back to the flat but I fear the worst. What do I do?

@madboutcats Well you can bring the cats back. The LL has been very stupid to serve a Section 8. He could have served a Section 21, as you have two months to go till the end of the initial term, which would mean you should leave after Christmas. (However, you don't actually have to leave until he gets possession from a court and then a bailiff - the whole process takes around 8 months).

So, in summary, you can bring the cats back. You will then have at least 5 months and probably much, much longer in which to find another place.

As he has issued a Section 8 it will take even longer and the chances of him winning the case are remote. Breach of tenancy agreement is not one of the mandatory grounds for a Section 8 (which are non payment of rent and antisocial behaviour). Instead it is a discretionary ground, which are very hard to prove and win. Furthermore the law says that pets should be allowed unless there is a very good reason not to and the fact that it's written they are not allowed in the tenancy agreement doesn't change that. Someone in a separate property on a separate floor being allergic will not be seen as a good reason I am sure.

All you would have to do is turn up at court (it's very informal - just a sort of office really and just one court official) and answer any questions. It would almost certainly be thrown out. And even if he did win he would still have to apply for a bailiff. The average wait for a court date is around 2 to 3 months and for a bailiff from one to two months. So you have at least 5 months from now before anything would happen.

Feel free to contact me by pm and I'd also be happy to give you the template letter that worked so well for the other family in almost the same situation.

I've done this. Very well behaved cat. Put it in your car in a pet carrier if you know the landlord's coming round. Put the cat food in a cupboard. Job done.

Done this 3 times without consequence; twice in London once in Chicago. Both London flats (in the same block, landlord no.1 sold up so we moved within the building) were furnished but cat wasn’t the type to go for furniture so nothing was damaged. We had 6 monthly inspections and we shoved the cat stuff in the back of the wardrobe, cat in carrier and went round to a friends or up to the roof terrace. They were flats in modern high rise developments and the landlords weren’t local so there was zero chance of being rumbled because they strolled by and saw the cat in the window. We’re now accidental landlords of our U.K. house and I would have no issue whatsoever with a tenant having a cat. It’s a shame that some are so difficult.

To thecatneuterer,

Thank you for getting back to me so quickly. If you do happen to have properties in Southend or Westcliff, contact me please.

I will pm you for a template letter if it goes to Court.

My cats are displaying behaviours with toileting in wrong places even though there is cat litter available & clean, which tells me they're upset for not being with me all the time. I'm only around them for an hour or 2 before I have to go home to put my daughter to bed & fit in around my work too. LL thinks it's simple to get rid of them when they have been around me for 8/9 years. I would understand if I only had them for 5 mins (not enough time to establish a bond). LL only told me no pets on day of signing the tenancy agreement & I didn't know what to do. He asked his wife & her response was "I'd make an exception if I didn't tell upstairs no pets". Then 3 months later, it's her son who got allergy to pets. I think it's an excuse to give me a hard time.

I want to settle down & have the cats be out in the open meaning everyone knows & is fine with them. But as I explained to LL, it is so hard to find places that accept HB & cats. He said he was in the same position with his dogs as I am now with cats but I shouldn't have accepted the place. I felt like slapping him but didn't. He knew I was living at my mom's & I just couldn't live with her anymore but all the understanding goes out of the window when there's power involved & to make me feel so guilty.

Not sure how to PM you just yet. Lol. Will get there.

To expressedways,

LL have a gardener to mow the flipping grass that I could do myself & probably blabbed to LL bout seeing cats when there are cats which aren't mine that comes into the garden. So LL decided to walk into my garden unexpectedly & saw me with my cat. It was too easy to accept my £300 pet deposit cos I felt passionate bout keeping them so the idiot wanted to upset me while at work with a Section 8 over the cats! Hard to prove anything though. I would have hidden them & bowls etc at my mom's if I had 48 hours notice but no, that's too easy too.

I have cat sit several times for friends who need to hide their cats for inspections. Just saying nothing bad happened to them.

Landlords aren't able to accept pet deposits anymore, we have had to give our tenant theirs back.
It doesn't encourage landlords to accept pets.
That said we also rent with pets and I think dc cause more damage.

I’m sorry that’s happened to you @Madboutcats. Your landlord sounds horrid

Any landlord that accepts cats & HB in my area would be good for me.

My LL is horrid even though his gardener & himself thinks he's a real nice guy, I think differently. Guys who think they are often are not. :(

Ask the EA specifically to ask the LL about the cat. I had to rent a place some time ago, had 2 cats, everywhere I looked said no pets, but the house I liked best let me have them. I explained to the EA who rang the LL and permission was given. Some of them actually don't mind when push comes to shove. If you're otherwise a great fit, good tenant, likely to be there a while, no trouble, whatever then LLs bend their own rules.

No cats or dogs rule number 2. Cats bring fleas as do dogs but cat worse. Dogs bring smells. I'm an animal lover but not all people are and have to think of future Lets at all time.
I carry out 3 monthly Inspections and any animal present on inspection permanently in property Notice is served immediately. Rule number 1 my property my rules pay rent on time keep to tenancy rules, simple

I hid my cat from a landlord years ago. He said he used to allow cats but the previous tenant's cat had had kittens, they'd caused loads of damage which the tenant hadn't made good. My cat was spayed, house trained and no trouble so I didn't tell him.

It was fine, he didn't find out. When he came round we put the cat out. That didn't work so well- she miowed at the window! We said it was a cute neighbours cat and he seemed OK with that - but if I did it again I'd take the cat to a friend's when the LL was coming.

This was years ago - I was a student and young. These days I'd make more of an effort to find a place that allowed cats, but if it came to it I'd lie about the cat rather than lose her.

@Stevesone1 You wouldn't be able to serve notice immediately if the let is still in the initial term (6 or 12 months) as you can only evict on Section 21. If you tried to evict using Section 8 you would almost certainly lose. Anyone who was really an animal lover would go out of their way to allow pets if at all possible. And as for 'an eye on future lets' - have you any idea how strong the demand for lets with pets is? If I advertise a property that very prominently states 'pet friendly' I get roughly ten times the number of applicants than I do if I don't put that.

I paid my ll £300 pet deposit. Can I ask for it back even though 4 years ago and we still live here??. Sorry for derail!!
Oh and thecatneuterer your advice is sought in the litter tray I believe!!

Winterdaysarehere - you can ask for it back if you sign a new tenancy. If you are still on the old tenancy agreement and it has now become rolling periodic then you can't. So basically if they put up the rent, meaning you need to sign a new agreement, you can get it back then.

Sorry but i will serve notice immediately.
Cats bring fleas Fact and had that experience Dogs bring smells Fact and had that experience Both are difficult to remove so no,100% will never ever let one of my Properties to a potential renter who has pets. My property my choice. Simple rules and in over 35 years of being a professional B2L portfolio operator i now keep to My rules.
Always think of the next tenant.

I'm a LL and honestly as long as you are willing to replace if the kitty damages things I don't really care. Pay your rent on time.

Steveson - as I said - you can serve notice but it wouldn't be upheld in court - so a bit of a waste of money. You have the option not to renew a tenancy - and that's all.

I too am a professional LL of over 30 years. I've always allowed pets and it have never caused problems. It's people that seem to cause problems (and funnily enough it's never the pet owning ones) not animals. And as I said, it's a great business decision as the demand is so high and you can even charge over the odds if you feel so inclined. It's entirely up to you if you want to say you don't allow it, but if you find they move pets in anyway you are limited to not renewing the tenancy. When Section 21 is eventually abolished you will probably have no option to evict on those grounds at all.

I had two cats in a flat. When someone came to do some work who knew the land lord I put cats in my car and tidied their stuff away. No one ever knew, when we left we ensued the whole flat was spotless and steamed the carpets

Also 'cats bring fleas - fact'. Uh no - it is isn't a fact. A regularly flea-treated cat does not bring fleas.

So Steveson - are you talking about Section 8 notice? Have you ever tried to evict on discretionary Section 8 grounds? If so, how did it go?