Renting with dogs

[wolfie]

Does anyone rent with dogs? Is it really that hard to find a place to rent with dogs?

There are plenty of dogs in the city, so I'm guessing it isn't all that hard. I read all these things, like to put together a resume for your pet for potential landlords. Or maybe all that isn't necessary...

[poofy]

I dont but my sister does and she has to pay exter 150 a mo for her dogs to be there..I think its a mo..ummm, any way she has to outdoor dogs..

[Crazy-Cat-Lover]

I am renting with three cats and I will have a puppy soon. My apartment building allows all sizes/breeds of dogs. :D

[LoudLou]

...Is it really that hard to find a place to rent with dogs?...

Renting when you have fur-kids can be a challenge depending upon where you live. Some helpful info http://www.petcaretips.net/renting-with-pet.html

Our town, although they say it's a pet friendly town, really it is not. Rentals that allow pets here are often times very difficult to find and very $pendy. Resumes for your pets really DO help. Our kids had them for our last move. They are an easy, sometimes creative way to show a potential landlord how much a part of the family your pets are and how responsible an owner you are. References from current neighbors and those that know your pets are very helpful.

Hope that helps.

Some more useful info :
http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/renting_with_pets_the_online_resource_for_rental_m anagers_and_pet_owners/finding_petfriendly_rental_housing/

http://www.peoplewithpets.com/

http://realtytimes.com/rtcpages/19990617_pets.htm

Katie - LOUD Louie & The Beans

[kimboe]

i rent right now with one dog and one cat, We want to move to another place that is a bit bigger and it's soooo HARD to find a place that rents allowing larger dogs!

[sammy101]

We are leasing a house with my two kids. Luckily, the landord is ok with them! :) We found houses we actually really liked didnt allow dogs :o I think its more difficult with appartments than houses.

[Pembroke_Corgi]

I rent a house and I find that it's actually ok sometimes if you just talk to the landlord. We don't get charged pet rent, we just let the landlord meet our dogs, and emphasize that they are well-behaved and have had classes. Luckily our landlord is a dog lover so he likes them- those are the best kind to get!

[jennifert9]

I do rent with Duncan. We had to pay an extra non-refundable deposit which is ridiculous but it's a very nice place. Very pet friendly. They have dog runs and poop bags stationed all around the complex. It's very nice. I have been looking for a new apartment however and it is very frustrating. Most places will not take dogs over 50 lbs. I have no idea why that is the "magical" number....?Do dogs under 50 lbs behave better than dogs over 50 lbs???? :confused: And they all want extra money per month which is absolutely asinine!!! I think that is a huge ploy to get more money from people with pets. It's a scam and should be outlawed....I see no reason whatsoever that the landlord deserves more $ because I have an animal...? In fact, all the more reason for me to keep my $20, $30, $40 bucks...I need to use it for dog food and vet bills!!! :eek: :p It's just a big scam. Duncan has never done one iota of damage to any apartment I have ever lived in. In fact my roommates did more damage and I didn't have to pay extra for them!!! I could understand if I had to pay more for them!!! But not for the dog???? It's nuts!!!!

[boscibo]

look at Craiglist (http://www.craigslist.org/) (if your city is large enough to be listed) for rentals, most state right in the ad if dogs are allowed. Some ads have pictures of the places, too.

I rented with a dog before Craigslist and other internet resources and it took a lot of time on the phone to find a place that would take a dog. It was hard, and I ended up taking a 2 bedroom place (more expensive and more 'generic' than some of the beautiful historic places I looked at), but I had a plce for all my cats and my dog.

[finn's mom]

I've always rented. It sometimes takes more time finding a place, but, if you use the resources available (online apartment finders, or the book of apartments that you can get at your grocery store), it's not that hard. It prevents you from driving around getting told that you can only have one pet, and, they have to weigh ten pounds or less...there are a lot of funny restrictions. Heck, my cat Dusty weighed 24 pounds at one time. ;) But, you can find places. I searched hard online each time and always managed to come out with a great apartment. I won't pay pet rent if I can avoid it, so, I try to find places that have the smallest fee to move in and with no pet rent. The last place I lived where it was an issue was in Dallas...it was $150 per pet, but, they were really cool and only made me pay for one. :) I had two elderly small pets at that time. The fee was non refundable, but, there was no extra monthly rent. And, some of the other places I'd looked at were as high as $600 per pet ($300 refundable). It can get crazy. But, you can find places. :)

[QueenScoopalot]

I just posted info (long) from the HSUS about pet friendly apartments throughout the U.S. ;)
http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=94190

[Ginger's Mom]

I rented with a dog for ten years. I was very lucky in that the complex was extremely liberal, with no additional pet fees and no size restrictions. That is very rare (and they actually changed their policy while I lived there, but we were "grandfathered" in). My best advise to you would be to look at the larger complexes, they are more likely to allow in pets, simply because they have more apartments they have to fill.

The most common size restriction I have run into is 25 pounds, everyone likes to say under 25 pounds because they are less likely to break free from it's owner or cause serious injury to a human being (according to the complex owners, not necessarily the opinion of this writer or this board). It's mainly a issue of liability with the larger complexes. That is where the pet resume may come in handy. Peaches had her CGC, was well traveled and very well behaved (not to mention cute as a button ;)). When I was looking for a new place, only one complex said that they would not even consider any dog over 25 pounds.

I wish you the best of luck. :)

[Glacier]

It can be tricky, but not impossible. When we moved up here, we couldn't find any place that would rent to us with 3 dogs and 2 cats. Fortunately, we in a position that we could afford to buy.

I have a friend who rents with a 14 dog team. She keeps her dogs like mine--off chains and allowed in her cabin. Granted she just got electricity last year and still doesn't have running water, but she has a place that lets her keep 14 dogs!

Good luck, I'm sure you'll find something. The pet resume sounds like a great idea to me. Might also help if you had a Canine Good Citizen or some other kind of training certificate for the dogs.

[wolfie]

Well, luckily Daphne isn't that big, so perhaps size won't be an issue. Or it might, if the rule is 10 or 25 pounds. :rolleyes: Daphne has her Canine Good Citizen though.

Oh yeah, I've heard of Craigslist before, but I've never really looked at it. It's nice they list dog friendly places. And QueenScoopalot, that post is very helpful! Thank you everyone.

[Uabassoon]

Not that this helps you any but I'm always amused when I see ads for apartment and it says in huge letters "Pet Friendly!" then when you read the small print it says only pets under 10 lbs. Which is so silly, Corkscrew weighs more than that! Would I have to put him on a diet in order for me to rent?

[Toby's my baby]

My dad is a landlord, and has been ever since I was a baby. I try to convince him to let most of the peoples animals stay. From what I have learned throughout my life this is the good and bad things that you can do. .. .

Rent a house/ apartment/ trailor, that is a little older, not brand new, and that doesnt have new carpet (even if you KNOW that you dog/ cat wont have an accident in the house) it make the landlord feel a lot safer if they have animals in a house that is SO important, aka. new carpet and stuff.

Landlords are happier if you have an older pet. They dont like to let someone rent a house if they have a brandnew puppy or kittie, because the risk of damage is higher

Landlords prefer outside pets (but I konw this isnt always possible) My dad will rent a trailor to pretty much anybody if their pet is outside :o.

It helps if you bring your dog with you when you go look at the house, and let the landlord see that it is a good dog / cat. and well behaved

WHATEVER YOU DO= do NOT get ANY pet without asking your landlord, even if it is ok with them if you had a cat / dog when you moved in. That makes my dad the most mad, and most people dont get their deposit back if they get another cat or dog


I hope this helped you some!

[wolfie]

Thanks Toby's my baby. That is helpful to know!

[JenBKR]

It's sad that some people are irresponsible with their pets and ruin it for everyone else. I don't rent anymore, but when I did my husband and I rented a townhouse and pets were forbidden. Some of my neighbors had cats anyway, but I didn't want to risk it.

[BitsyNaceyDog]

I don't rent, but I know people who do...

My sister-in-law rents an apartment. She has a cat and 4 parakeets, but when she moved in she also had a dog (who has since passed away). Her dog was a cocker mix. She had to have the dog interviewed before she could move in with him.

My friend rents a house with a cocker and 3 cats. She originally was looking at apartments but had a hard time finding a place that would allow her to bring 4 pets. Most of the apartments she found had either size or breed restrictions.

[ramanth]

I rent.

And to be honest, it varies from place to place. I'm live in Mid Michigan and I had a very hard time finding a place that would take a dog Kia's size. Most places would only allow small dogs. The places I would find online that said they took large dogs would tell me that the dog had to be under 30 lbs. :eek:

It was finally down to two apartments. One in Dewitt and one in Williamston. The place in Dewitt would only rent 1st floor apartments to tenants with large dogs and they had no units available at the time but I could be placed on a waiting list.

I needed a place pronto and thankfully the Williamston apartment was nice so I signed a lease there and have been there ever since. :)

Good luck!

Even though their add might say they take pets, make sure you find out little details. Size restrictions, breed restrictions, some places even expect you to declaw your cats. :eek: :mad:

[elizabethann]

I rent with one dog and 2 cats. I was at my apartment for 8 years and left for about 6 months. I then came back (this time with a dog). I had to beg my landlord to let me keep Fenway. She was so happy to have me back (because I am a good tenant) that she said "yes".

Luckily, my neighbors are pretty cool because Fenway barks everytime he hears them come home (even at 2 in the morning).

My neighbor also has a dog and the landlord knows about it. However, she kind of "lied" to the landlord about her dog. She said she would have the dog on weekends because it's a dog she grew up with and she couldn't bear to not see it. But the dog lives with her full-time. She's a cool black Lab and is older so she is very calm, cool and collected (unlike Fenway). She doesn't bark and you wouldn't even know she was in the apartment, she's so quiet (again, unlike Fenway).

Luckily, my neighbor lives over 1 hour away and she is a "hands off landlord". I can't remember the last time I saw her. Probably over 5 years ago!

Renting with animals (especially dogs) is tough.

I dream of someday owning my own home in the country where Fenway can bark and bark all he wants.

[lv4dogs]

Check with your local shelter too. The shelters in my area have a booklet with pet friendly apartment listings.
Good luck.

[pnance]

I rented for about 8 years before we bought this house. Initially I only had one small dog (10lbs) and a cat and found it hard to get a place. I even had to not mention the cat in 1 apartment. When we moved to our last rental (a house) the landlord had a restriction based on breed (rottweilers, chows, and pits were no). I didn't agree, but it was the only place we found that would accept the then 2 dogs (10lbs) and (55 lbs) plus a cat without a hassle. I agree that you should try for older homes w/o new carpet, etc. I usually had much better luck with those than ones that were advertised as just renovated or new carpet, etc. Also call around before you drive around. If it doesn't list or just lists pet ok, call to check the restrictions. It will save you a lot in gas and time.

[king2005]

My dad rented a place for 6yrs+. Max (my old dog) started to get upset in the lower end. My dad had special cleaners come every year to clean the rug. The landlord loved Max & when he walked into the apt. he saw the stains. He said, looks like you guys tried to clean it. We said yes. Before we leave (whenever that happeneds) We'll replace the carpet for you.

The landlord said why? its crap carpet, I don't care, besides, Max is a great dog & can crap all over the place if he has too. Don't worry about it. I'll put hardwood flooring in when you guys move out, or when Max passes on (Max had to be on a carpet)..

We were lucky in this case. The landlord was rich & LOVED Max. He was the only man that Max let in the house when nobody was home. We don't know why, but it was good, cause we liked getting things fixed :)