House woes. (May I rant?) - UPDATE

[lizbud]

Don't know what your financial picture looks like but, it may be more feasible to buy than rent a house. You usually pay about the same or less
with a mortgage rather than rent. Rentals can be vary expensive depending on the area. As to renting with pets, my daughter was in that same situation
with one dog ( a pit mix) and was turned down everywhere until she got a letter from her Vet (our family Vet for years) attesting to the dog's good nature.
It worked for her.

[Alysser]

I was going to say the same as Lizbud, Courtney. Maybe you can look into buying, even a condo? If you have the money, why not try? I'm not sure you can get approved for a mortgage or anything but maybe it would be a better option.

That sounds so beyond frustrating. I am sure your pets are beautifully behaved, they lost a customer over assumptions, so who was the loser in the situation?

[Casper]

Thanks for the positive thoughts.

We would love to buy, but at the same time we plan on moving out of state in a year or two. Plus our credit isn't up to par for the whole house buying process. I've asked the dog catcher if he knows of any places, and he didn't. I'll try to get in touch with our elusive humane society to see if they have any suggestions. I've also asked a few friends who rent and have pets and its alarming how many of them aren't even supposed to have pets, but just sneak them in. I definitely couldn't do that.

We do offer pet deposits and references, and that sometimes gets their attention, but they always end up choosing someone else. I don't know if everyone is looking for older tenants or what. The majority of people our age around here are trouble, and its common to assume young 20-somethings might not be the best choice, but gosh... just give us a chance.

I know first hand the damage kids can do to rentals...

Oh my goodness, that sounds like a complete nightmare... and incredibly sad that people lived in such conditions.
I'm glad you don't let pets deter you from renting to someone. Now if only you had a rental available for us... and didn't live so far away.

[moosmom]

When I rented my apartment, my credit wasn't good either and they required two months security and one month's rent in advance. No problem. I asked about cats and they said fine. I've been here 9 years already and have had cats come and go, because of me being in rescue. The girls in the management office often call me with rescue issues, which I don't mind. It's a win-win situation in my case.

I once lived in a complex where the 2 kids (ages 4& 6) upstairs were not allowed outside to play in the huge, beautiful courtyard, so they played "ring around the rose" in the living room till all hours of the night. The noise was awful. My first "red flag" should've been when the landlord said, "Oh, and the kids upstairs are quiet and go to bed early so there shouldn't be a problem." Yeah right. Not only did they NOT go to bed early, the mother's boyfriend got a puppy and tied it to the railing in the common areas of the building, allowing it to bark incessantly. I called the cops on the advice of the landlord. She told the cop, "I pay taxes AND YOUR SALARY and you can't tell me what to do." I would avoid coming home at night until the kids went to bed, the noise was so bad.

It's sad that irresponsible people ruin it for the good people who abide by the laws. I wish you much luck in finding a place to live. There is SOMEPLACE out there waiting for you!!!

[Karen]

Be persistent, and whenever you see a fellow dog owner, ask if they know anyone, or any place. Also, it is worth getting references from your vet., etc. showing you are not a typical pet owners - you are a Pet Talker!

[Asiel]

Sorry you had to run into the "no pets" policy most places have now. My friend has an apt building and she had the same policy, I spent the day with her once but took my 3 dogs along... we had a great chat session, had lunch etc. I took the dogs out to the back once to potty then back in... they slept the whole time I was there- 5 hours in all. Before leaving I asked if she had a problem with me taking the dogs and she said of course not...I reminded her of the noisy kids we heard while we were chatting... told her maybe she should reconsider her policy, she thought it was only because my dogs were super trained-I told her most dogs were like mine, people today really take great care of their dogs. Told her to screen the next dog owners, ask for a pet damage deposit and give it a try. Today she has a "no kids " policy. Some people just don't realize that not all people are letting their dogs tear up the place, most are responsible owners and it's pretty easy to weed out the bad dog people.

I have to agree that kids do more damage than dogs today, seems parents don't care what the kids do as long as it keeps them out of their hair.

ETA-- I should have said many of the kids today, I know there are still terrific well behaved kids out there and I don't mean to label al kids as brats.

[Casper]

I'm so happy to see that you guys understand where I'm coming from. I've been asking around and have gathered a few more numbers I can call about rentals today. I am more optimistic now and will just keep giving it my all until something finally works out. I have a feeling that something good will happen soon.