Should I Allow Pets?

Roughly 50% of tenants have a pet of some kind. Denying pets reduces your pool of potential renters.

Pros

• Pet owners are normally required to provide additional security deposits.
• Pet owners may stay longer as other property available to them is limited.
• Two or more pets can actually be better than one since they provide companionship for each other and are less likely to cause damage due to boredom or anxiety.

Cons

• Pets can create odor and damage problems if not properly supervised by their owners.
• Items such as carpet generally require more frequent replacement in pet friendly properties.
• It can be difficult to obtain reliable references on pets from former landlords.
• Pet damages sometimes exceed the amount of security deposits and it can be difficult to recover the excess from former tenants.

Recommendation

As with most such issues, each case is different and comes with its own set of risk versus reward considerations. The following are some factors to consider in making your decision:

• Do you have pets or have pets previously been in the property?
• Does the property have older carpet?
• Do you intend to occupy the property yourself at some point? Would you likely upgrade many items in that process anyway?
• Do you have allergies that might be aggravated by pet odor/dander?
• Would allowing pets provide significant reduction in projected market times?