Should I Allow Pets in my Rental?
Pets… To truly understand the schism that has widened between the two parties to this debate, you should first take a look at both sides of the argument! In this post, I will play advocate to both sides in an effort to come to the best possible conclusion.
Let me start with the tenant’s point of view. To many pet owners, their furry little bundle of joy is essentially a member of the family. Especially here in Southern California where pet shrinks, groomers, and luxury boarding facilities abound! To these tenants, the thought of giving up their dogs and cats in order to move into a home is absolutely ludicrous! Often times, they will offer to have us inspect their current home for pet damage, show us photos of “Fluffy”, and swear on the graves of various ancestors…all to convince us that THEIR animal is different. They can’t understand why anyone would hesitate to rent to them and their pets.
Now let us examine the owner’s point of view. Just about every owner that I have met with has heard some kind of horror story from a friend, neighbor, or family member about a renter/pet situation that went awry. As soon as they hear that an applicant has a pet, their minds conjure up images of destroyed yards, urine soaked carpets, and smells that will linger for years. It is just like the media…the happy news doesn’t get reported and spread! In order for a story to be worth repeating, it has to be shocking or horrific in some way. As a result, most owners won’t hear about the hundreds of times that we rent to people with pets and have nothing go wrong.
Now for some stats: We estimate conservatively (based Classic’s on hundreds of managed properties), that more than 85 – 90% of renters own some kind of cat or dog. Here in Santa Clarita, the rental market has become increasingly competitive! An increase in the number of available properties coupled with an unchanged pool of renters means that if you want to rent your home quickly, you need to appeal to the largest market share that you can.
In conclusion, I would encourage home owners to at least consider the prospect of renting to folks that have pets. Is it because of some wacky idealistic world that I’ve imagined where people and animals live together in a dreamy rainbow filled wonderland? Absolutely not. As a rental home owner, I want to make sure that my home has as little vacancy as possible. If my home comes up vacant, I don’t want to make a decision that will eliminate all but 10% of potential renters. For the average home in Santa Clarita, one month of missed rent on a vacant home is about $2,000. With dough like that on the line, every day counts! After all, you can use every dime of the tenant’s security deposit to correct pet damage if need be. In fact, it is completely acceptable to increase the rent for folks with pets, take a larger deposit (make sure you know the legal deposit limits), etc. There are plenty of ways to safeguard your home and investment from the potential pet carnage!
Always remember… Less vacancy means more money in your pocket!
