Pets and Rental Properties

Pets and Rental Properties

Are you finding it difficult to rent a property with a pet? It is a common assumption that landlords will automatically reject an application for a tenant simply because they have a pet. However, this is not the case.

Yes, there are many landlords that are reluctant to allow pets within their investment properties and there are various reasons why this may be the case.  A landlord will not be against a tenant renting a property because they simply  “don’t like animals”.

Unfortunately, there is a lot of bad publicity regarding tenants with pets. A landlord's previous bad experience that was poorly managed may deter them from allowing pets. But, there may be other extenuating factors with some properties simply not being suitable.

But don’t be disheartened, there are still many landlords that are quite flexible with allowing pets in their properties and you can increase your chances by following some of these simple steps.

  1. Be honest on your application. Don’t try to hide that you have a pet because chances are your property manager WILL find out and this could lead to termination of your tenancy and will severely impact your chances of finding another landlord that will allow you to keep a pet.
  2. Provide information about your animal. This could include the type/breed, age, photos, the animal’s habits, how you care for it i.e. if a dog how often do you walk it, veterinary records etc.
  3. Provide references from previous agents/landlords or even neighbours about the animal.
  4. Ask the question “would pets be considered”. Many people simply think a property doesn’t allow pets because it isn’t mentioned in the advertisement.
  5. Apply for suitable properties – a small unit would not be suitable for a medium to large size dog
  6. If applying for a property that is part of a strata scheme they may have by laws in place that do not allow pets and this is something that the landlord cannot overturn. However, if the owner's corporation does allow pets you need to be prepared to pay an application fee to the strata agent for approval to have the pet and, in some cases, this can exceed $250 and approval time frames can be anywhere between 2-4 weeks.
  7. Be prepared to agree to special conditions regarding the keeping of pets at a property. You will be required to have carpets professionally cleaned and the property professionally fumigated upon vacating.
  8. Provide reassurance in writing as part of your application that should there be any issues or damage because of the animal that they will be rectified by you. Legislation does not permit pet bonds or bonds greater than 4 weeks rent however, whilst this is not something we encourage you could consider offering a higher rental as an additional form of security to the landlord.


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