Apartments/Houses that allow small dogs

MidMan25

Hi there

I missed out on a great apartment today because the landlord doesn't accept pets.

We've a small house dog non shed and very well trained. We offered a bigger deposit, references for the dog from previous landlord, vet record, the works.. alas no luck.

Please tell me that we can find a nice place to live that will allow us to have the dog.

Oracle

Don't mention the dog and keep it very low profile. I think most neighbours don't care as long as there’s no smells, barking or fouling. Although be prepared to move if the landlord objects; highly unlikely in current climate.

I have a neighbour who's been "minding" a small dog for a "friend" for years. That dog died, now she's "minding" another one for someone else!

MidMan25

Oracle wrote: »

Don't mention the dog and keep it very low profile. I think most neighbours don't care as long as there’s no smells, barking or fouling. Although be prepared to move if the landlord objects; highly unlikely in current climate.

I have a neighbour who's been "minding" a small dog for a "friend" for years. That dog died, now she's "minding" another one for someone else!

To be honest I wouldn't be comfortable going down the route of hiding the dog. It's not worth the hassle really is it and its not fair on the landlord, they have the right to decide who stays on their property!

Moonbeam

I would be mixed about letting someone with a dog rent my house.
I would have a separate contract and an extra deposit for dog related stuff ,saying that I allow kids and from experience my kids and my dog have prob done equal damage to my house:)
It would also depend to me what the peole were like,if it was a sweet elderly couple I would prob have no issue,if it was someone who was away 12 hours of the day I would be worried the dog would be bored and chew my furniture or drive the neighbours mad!

The_Conductor

OP- in the case of apartments- the landlord's lease (and yes, they have a lease- a thousand year lease perhaps, but a lease nonetheless) will state the rules governing habitation of the unit. Inevitably- it will have a no-pets clause. It may be policed in a lenient manner- however the management company would be perfectly within its rights to demand you remove the animal forthwith without notice. The landlord stating no pets- is simply a regurgitation of the rules governing living there- its not a clause deliberately to annoy you. You may get around it with a fish tank (with whatever inhabitants you care to keep there- a snake, reptile(s) or actual fish)- but normally that is the extent of it.

For houses- it is the landlord's prerogative whether or not to accept tenants with pets. Normal practice would be to demand a higher deposit (possibly an additional month's deposit) in the case of a tenant with a cat or a dog- on account of the damage that even the best behaved pet does to furniture, fixtures and fittings. You'd be very surprised at the amount of damage a dog can do to a house- you mightn't notice it immediately, as it tends to be incremental. In the case of cats- its more apparent- as they tend to pick a particular piece for furniture for sharpening their claws etc. Its just in their nature- its what they do- they wouldn't be normal if they didn't.

So- yes, renting with a dog is an issue. And no- I definitely wouldn't suggest moving in and 'minding' someone else's dog on a temporary basis- it could be construed as a breach of the landlord's lease- along with a breach of yours- and Management Companies are itching to fine people whenever they possibly can, as landlord's have been loath to allow increases to management charges in the current climate.

Oracle

MidMan25 wrote: »

To be honest I wouldn't be comfortable going down the route of hiding the dog. It's not worth the hassle really is it and its not fair on the landlord, they have the right to decide who stays on their property!

I'm not suggesting you hide the dog, just don't mention it. There won't be any hassle as long as you pay the rent on time, and the landlord doesn't get any complaints.

MidMan25

The_Conductor wrote: »

OP- in the case of apartments- the landlord's lease (and yes, they have a lease- a thousand year lease perhaps, but a lease nonetheless) will state the rules governing habitation of the unit. Inevitably- it will have a no-pets clause. It may be policed in a lenient manner- however the management company would be perfectly within its rights to demand you remove the animal forthwith without notice. The landlord stating no pets- is simply a regurgitation of the rules governing living there- its not a clause deliberately to annoy you. You may get around it with a fish tank (with whatever inhabitants you care to keep there- a snake, reptile(s) or actual fish)- but normally that is the extent of it.

For houses- it is the landlord's prerogative whether or not to accept tenants with pets. Normal practice would be to demand a higher deposit (possibly an additional month's deposit) in the case of a tenant with a cat or a dog- on account of the damage that even the best behaved pet does to furniture, fixtures and fittings. You'd be very surprised at the amount of damage a dog can do to a house- you mightn't notice it immediately, as it tends to be incremental. In the case of cats- its more apparent- as they tend to pick a particular piece for furniture for sharpening their claws etc. Its just in their nature- its what they do- they wouldn't be normal if they didn't.

So- yes, renting with a dog is an issue. And no- I definitely wouldn't suggest moving in and 'minding' someone else's dog on a temporary basis- it could be construed as a breach of the landlord's lease- along with a breach of yours- and Management Companies are itching to fine people whenever they possibly can, as landlord's have been loath to allow increases to management charges in the current climate.

Thanks for the detailed reply. It's a duplex apartment in a residential estate so there are no building rules so to speak. To be honest there's a lack of decent property in Cork and most nice places seem to have their choice of a few tenants at least so most will naturally go with people without a pet.

jd

MidMan25 wrote: »

Thanks for the detailed reply. It's a duplex apartment in a residential estate so there are no building rules so to speak. To be honest there's a lack of decent property in Cork and most nice places seem to have their choice of a few tenants at least so most will naturally go with people without a pet.

If it's a duplex it is almost certainly under a leasehold from a management company - be careful, you may be prohibited from keeping pets, no matter what the landlord may say.

MidMan25

jd wrote: »

If it's a duplex it is almost certainly under a leasehold from a management company - be careful, you may be prohibited from keeping pets, no matter what the landlord may say.

Well the landlord has basically said that she is happy to accept pets but the decision rests with the co-owner of the property and seeing as they have a lot of tenants interested they are almost certainly going to go with tenants without pets. Its an understandable position to take from the landlord's perspective, I'm just wondering is there any real hope of finding somewhere nice near Cork that would allow pets. It seems unlikely given the lack of quality accomodation on offer.

athtrasna

jd wrote: »

If it's a duplex it is almost certainly under a leasehold from a management company - be careful, you may be prohibited from keeping pets, no matter what the landlord may say.

+ 1

OP I live in a duplex apartment, dogs are not permitted. We have had some tenants in the development bring dogs and the management company has intervened meaning either the dog had to go or the tenant.

Save yourself a lot of hassle and stress, don't waste your time looking at apartments. There is an almost universal ban on dogs in high density developments.

hfallada

Generally its management companies that have an issue with pets. I know an apartment/housing development that doesnt allow any dogs even in the houses. But I dont think landlords want extra wear and tear on their houses for no extra money.

My parents friends brought a house and installed central heating ( the house didnt have central heating in Dublin city in 1998) and within a few weeks of the heating on the house was covered in fleas. According to pest control flea egg from cats were in the carpet for several years and the heat caused them to develop. So there is a lot of potential issues with allowing pets

The_Conductor

MidMan25 wrote: »

Well the landlord has basically said that she is happy to accept pets but the decision rests with the co-owner of the property and seeing as they have a lot of tenants interested they are almost certainly going to go with tenants without pets. Its an understandable position to take from the landlord's perspective, I'm just wondering is there any real hope of finding somewhere nice near Cork that would allow pets. It seems unlikely given the lack of quality accomodation on offer.

If its a duplex apartment- the decision *does not* rest with the co-owner- it rests with the management company. The landlord doesn't know what they're talking about. You're on a highway to misery with this particular property.

odds_on

If you have a fixed term lease and break the terms and conditions, during the first 6 months the landlord may just evict you without any pre warning - just 28 days notice.

MidMan25

The_Conductor wrote: »

If its a duplex apartment- the decision *does not* rest with the co-owner- it rests with the management company. The landlord doesn't know what they're talking about. You're on a highway to misery with this particular property.

Its irrelevant at this stage anyway, somebody else offered much more money because their house insurance was paying for it. :rolleyes:

SHOVELLER

I live in an apartment complex where the house rules specifically state no pets. Despite this there is a dog in an apartment nearby that barks periodically. But the worst part is a few months ago the dog defected in a corridor.

Anyway the managing agent has done nothing as has the landlord. I approached the tenants pointing out the rules and they came up with the ignorant excuses of not knowing about rules and something about other dogs in the complex.

Always amazes me when people are clearly in the wrong trying to argue or defend their position. Also the incredible stupidity of keeping a pet in an apartment all day does not occur to them.

Anybody have any similar experiences?