J4L Posted May 26, 2007 Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 What are people's views on this? A lot of Landlords don't want Tenants with Pets, why is this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Dewsberry Posted May 26, 2007 Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 If you are a management agent with any kind of experience you would not be asking this question ! or was it just the best one you could think of to get your advert on screen?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J4L Posted May 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 Oh for god sake!!! Small minded people really annoy me! Take a look at what our 'sig' says. We are a NEW agent and don't want to make the same mistakes as others have before. I'm trying to ascertain WHY landlords don't wish to have pets in their houses. I have reservations about replying to silly posts but for you I'm making an exception!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Dewsberry Posted May 26, 2007 Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 Sorry! Didn't mean to upset you ! But that one is a bit basic! Have just spent £1200 on one house sorting out the damage a dog did chewed 2 sofas chewed 1 bed dug up half the garden (lawn and shrubs) Scratched patio door with claws chewed the fence burrowed a tunnel under fence into next door chewed up laminate floor in 2 rooms chewed both newel posts top and bottom of stairs clawed every door in the house chewed stair carpet every carpet had to be shampooed to remove two thirds of a carrier bag full of dog hair continual complaints from next door neighbor with dog barking and howling at all times of day and night greasy patches on walls meant repainting also full house deep clean to remove "dog " smell The only pets we now allow without heavy terms are tamagotchis ! Hope this gives you an indication! Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J4L Posted May 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 Thankyou Simon That's some great thought for us to take on board. What you think a tenant will think if we take an extra £100 deposit to potentially cover any problems? I know your bill is £1200 but I'm trying to think of ideas around this. Can any insurance policy be purghased that you know that would cover such eventuality?? Gareth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Dewsberry Posted May 26, 2007 Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 An extra line in the lease requiring professional cleaning of all soft fabrics within the house on departure (carpets curtains sofas etc) is the very minimum - personally i used to charge £250 extra on the bond as well -Now we dont allow pets full stop! Also afriend of mine had to replace carpets as the stench from stale dog urine is enought to make anyone heave Dont know about ins - someone will probably do a policy somewhere Most (decent)tenants with pets expect to pay a premium for keeping one and are fairly grateful to have found an in experieneced LL who will allow it ! as most wont . Get around it ? Dont get into it ! Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_ mort Posted May 26, 2007 Report Share Posted May 26, 2007 The best place for a dog within a tenancy is buried about 4 feet down in the shrubbery. Generally you can get away with telling the parents about anything kids have done, and they will take it on board and try to put things right: but the dog is god. Cats are normally a bit better, although an existing tenant did once want a cat in a 5th storey flat - I pointed out that they could always let the cat out of the kitchen window - Once. I agree with Rodent: avoid pets - even fish except on the ground floor, (preferably boxed - in the freezer). If as a gesture of goodwill toward existing tenants you decide to waive the no pets rule, then get the landlords written permission for the specific pet and get a supplementary agreement signed covering the change in circumstances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J4L Posted May 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2007 Tony, 'The best place for a dog within a tenancy is buried about 4 feet down in the shrubbery.' I have 2 dogs Tony and I can assure you that my house doesn't smell of dogs, they don't chew anything and don't scratch doors etc, they also don't dig holes in the garden and are not noisy enough to annoy the neighbours. We've just bought another very nice little 2 bedder on a BTL and I have no problems with a Tenant having a dog. Should I pick up any problems on our 1st 3 monthly inspection then I will address it then. We wouldn't waive the no pet rule without of course speaking to the LL. If I can explain, We are trying to get the lowdown from Landlords AND tenants (see my poll in the Tenants Forum aswell) to see where we think all have made mistakes in the past. We think that most people seem to be set in their ways and we are trying to set new standards, and open up lines of communication that have up to now been closed. If I can go to a LL and say 'listen this person has referenced out really well and has 2 kids, is on HB and has a 6 year old cat who is house trained' 'what we'd like to suggest on this occasion is . . . . .etc' Don't people think that by communicating potential problems and having a realistic plan then LL's may well slacken off their 'no this rule' or their 'no that rule' thus increasing the chances of geting happier tenants who try much harder to keep the LL happy? I have a friend who has a portfolio of around 50 properties who only houses HB and DSS tenants and swears by them. He very rarely has any problems with any of them because he communicates properly with them. This 'them' and 'us' divide needs to be narrowed in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Dewsberry Posted May 27, 2007 Report Share Posted May 27, 2007 Fair to say "nothing is cast in stone " but years of experience suggest very strongly to me that if you have a dog you have a potential problem -if you dont, that potential problem is removed ! With the best will in the world a T never cleans the property to the standard that we do - ever ! and with a dog this problem is ALWAYS compounded. NO DOGS ALLOWED SIMON Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_ mort Posted May 27, 2007 Report Share Posted May 27, 2007 J4L, For information, I spent 2 years in my early 20's working dogs on a sheep farm, these dogs were obedient, hard workers and eager to please. Definitely "man's best friend". I'm not too proud to say I filled up a bit on leaving. In our business, and we own over 30 properties, and there is no "us and them". All properties are well decorated, good value for money, and as I have said on this forum in the past, I never let to anyone I would not be happy to go for a beer with. I know them all and I like them all; so in effect I treat the job almost as an extension of my social life. Cats I am fine with, but dogs generally should be allowed plenty of exercise - for a working dog about 20 - 30 miles a day. This can't be done realistically in the city. I'm not dissing you or your dogs, I'm sure they are great, but when you inspect your property and find that the back garden has been redesignated a dogs toilet and the people with whom you previously had a good working relationship can't see why you are annoyed, then you can turn a good relationship sour very quickly. If I was letting unfurnished farm cottages then no problem, provided either there were no sheep in the vicinity or the dog was sheep trained. I'm not and nor are most people. Please note I'm not talking about 'toy' dogs here. Personally I don't have a lot of time for them, but each to their own. I still wouldn't allow them. Oh, I have HB and DSS, as well as private tenants. They get exactly the same service as everyone else: in some instances better, if only because I'm aware they don't have the same spending power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J4L Posted May 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2007 Good to hear Tony and thanks very much for your input. Please don't think i'm having a go at anyone in particular here i'm just doing some research. Gareth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Dewsberry Posted May 27, 2007 Report Share Posted May 27, 2007 Entering the "renting game" can be a very steep and fast learning curve but i think most LL will agree that they will avoid ALL pets including dogs cats birds hamsters gerbils etc - I even had one T with a chinchilla! A friend of mine has just let a 3 bed semi to a T who has 4 pet snakes ! have to say i would have said a very big NO! Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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