Pet rents skyrocketing too?

HoneyNut

HoneyNut

Well-known Member
Location
Maryland
I never even knew there was 'pet rent', it's been a long time since I rented an apartment and I only knew about one time pet fees when moving in, but now that I'm thinking to sell my house and travel for a year or more, then settle down, I am looking at rents and today I stopped by a 55+ place for a tour. Their website said pet rent was $20 a month, but when I asked, they just raised it 175% to $35/month, and that is per pet -- so if I eventually add a little dog to my family of me+cat, I'd have to pay $70 a month EVERY MONTH for pet rent. I am shocked. This feels like it should be illegal, don't rental places re-paint and re-carpet between renters anyway, what the heck do they need $420 each year for?

I guess I will have to look at condo's, I suppose they cannot charge people extra for pets, can they?
 

Where I live, it's an additional $50.00 cleaning deposit plus $30.00/month/pet.

The complex has to approve the breed of the animal.

I don't own any pets, but IMO pet owners seem to live a more responsible low-key lifestyle that helps to improve the quality of life in an apartment complex.
 
HoneyNut said:
I never even knew there was 'pet rent', it's been a long time since I rented an apartment and I only knew about one time pet fees when moving in, but now that I'm thinking to sell my house and travel for a year or more, then settle down, I am looking at rents and today I stopped by a 55+ place for a tour. Their website said pet rent was $20 a month, but when I asked, they just raised it 175% to $35/month, and that is per pet -- so if I eventually add a little dog to my family of me+cat, I'd have to pay $70 a month EVERY MONTH for pet rent. I am shocked. This feels like it should be illegal, don't rental places re-paint and re-carpet between renters anyway, what the heck do they need $420 each year for?

I guess I will have to look at condo's, I suppose they cannot charge people extra for pets, can they?
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Because the price of repainting and carpeting is MUCH more than that rent will cover......and not everyone keeps the pet cleaned up after.
 

My building has a one time deposit on move in. I think it is $200. I do not know the criteria for getting it back. I am assuming no stains on the rugs, chewed up baseboards and the like. I hope to get a cat later this year, so I will investigate more.
 
I don't know about pets but everyone is using some sort of excuse to "rip you off." Some are saying that there is a supply "problem", others are saying the high prices were caused by the Covid pandemic and now all the businesses have to "catch up" because of all the money they lost over the last 2 years. Of course, the war in the Ukrainian is a "wonderful" excuse to raise the price of gas.

My brother always said that 2022 would be a very interesting year and I believe him. I don't know where all this prices are going but as in the past, buyer beware. Good luck with getting a home for your little hairy friend! By the way, a price increase of 175% is way out of line. Our government is telling us that the consumer price is somewhere in the 5 - 7%. Boy, I wish! Like my brother said, "2022 is sure gonna be an interesting year."
 
I own my place. At one time, I had three cats. Since my health isn't great, I decided to not have any more pets. I don't know why I didn't notice it when I had the cats, but I found several walls scratched to death, and a cat urine smell in the bathroom and all my stuffed furniture had holes from being used as scratching posts. They did a lot of damage, I didn't notice till they were gone.
 
oldaunt said:
Because the price of repainting and carpeting is MUCH more than that rent will cover......and not everyone keeps the pet cleaned up after.
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It is my understanding (might be wrong) that landlords will re-paint between tenants and will replace carpet at some standard number of years. I don't have any problem with pet deposits that have to be returned if there is no damage, and I don't have a problem with a unrefundable pet fee if it is earmarked for an actual service. But unending 'pet rent' does not seem to have a real purpose. If I have a pair of cats or little dogs and live in a complex that charges 'pet rent' of $40 per pet, after ten years I will have spent almost ten thousand dollars. I can see charging pet rent up to a reasonable amount (not sure what is reasonable), but I think for sure after a person has paid $5,000 they should be exempt from paying anymore at that apartment complex. And I think if a place is charging pet rent they should at no charge provide carpet shampooing every year.
 
HoneyNut said:
It is my understanding (might be wrong) that landlords will re-paint between tenants and will replace carpet at some standard number of years. I don't have any problem with pet deposits that have to be returned if there is no damage, and I don't have a problem with a unrefundable pet fee if it is earmarked for an actual service. But unending 'pet rent' does not seem to have a real purpose. If I have a pair of cats or little dogs and live in a complex that charges 'pet rent' of $40 per pet, after ten years I will have spent almost ten thousand dollars. I can see charging pet rent up to a reasonable amount (not sure what is reasonable), but I think for sure after a person has paid $5,000 they should be exempt from paying anymore at that apartment complex. And I think if a place is charging pet rent they should at no charge provide carpet shampooing every year.
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Having been a landlord and dealing with this, all I can say is if you don't like the rules, buy your own place and do as YOU want. I did.
 
oldaunt said:
if you don't like the rules, buy your own place
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Yes this is why I am so unhappy, when I was younger there was no such thing as 'pet rent' just a deposit that would be returned if no damage.

In my retirement budgeting plans I had line items for vet and pet costs, but nothing for rent surcharges. So it looks like my options to rent instead of buy are reduced and I will have to plan on buying a condo. That makes it more important that I know for sure where I want to live for the rest of my life, and right now I just retired and I don't know. I am very saddened by this. I really want to sell my house but these things make me feel insecure about doing it.
 
In my complex pets are an increased cost and added burden to the maintenance staff.

The management maintains several poop stations with green plastic bags that need to be refilled on a regular basis and special trash receptacles that have to be emptied, cleaned, etc...

The maintenance staff also has to go on poop patrol to clean up after the scofflaws that ignore the rules.

There is some additional wear and tear, cleaning, etc... in the common areas and repairs within the apartments when they turnover.

The office staff has to spend time dealing with complaints and concerns over barking, whining, neglect, etc...

It doesn't sound like much, but in a complex of over 200 apartments the cost mounts up.

I'm not sure what the appropriate dollar amount should be but I can understand the additional pent rent.
 
I've never heard of pet rent. The rule here is "companion pets only". I think that's silly because all pets are companions, but they actually required a note from your doctor or psychologist saying your pet was a necessary part of your treatment. Then the doctor note requirement became optional but they added, "no reptiles, no birds". Now it's "no caged animals".

Here, the pet deposit is $300, non-refundable.

The problem here is almost no one follows the rules about leashes and ca-ca management. Six dogs live here and only two people pick up after their dog. No one keeps their dog on a leash. Most residents just let the dogs out and shut their door, and the dogs poo and piddle all over where the kids play.

Then there's the problem of people not following the rule "children under age 5 must be supervised while outside". People just let the toddlers out, and toddlers aren't mindful of doggie-do.

Anyway, pet rent is unreasonable, imo. I'd raise a stink about it.
Rent is based first on the number of bedrooms (then amenities). Do dogs normally have their own bedroom? I wonder if that's a valid legal argument.
 
I paid a pet deposit when I moved into my 'Senior' apartment 4 years ago, and at the time it was a flat $250 charge .. period.
I have never paid anything else after that.

Now I hear that they have doubled the deposit amount for new renters, and I think they have to pay yearly.
 
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Aunt Bea said:
In my complex pets are an increased cost and added burden to the maintenance staff.

The management maintains several poop stations with green plastic bags that need to be refilled on a regular basis and special trash receptacles that have to be emptied, cleaned, etc...

The maintenance staff also has to go on poop patrol to clean up after the scofflaws that ignore the rules.

There is some additional wear and tear, cleaning, etc... in the common areas and repairs within the apartments when they turnover.

The office staff has to spend time dealing with complaints and concerns over barking, whining, neglect, etc...

It doesn't sound like much, but in a complex of over 200 apartments the cost mounts up.

I'm not sure what the appropriate dollar amount should be but I can understand the additional pent rent.
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The Maintenance crew here does not supply any poop bags, nor do they pick up after negligent pet owners ...
Pet owners will be fined pretty heavily if not obeying the rules they signed up for. It seems to work!

I do hear dogs out barking at times, but nothing bad. ...only small animals are allowed... under 25 pounds.
 
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Packerjohn said:
I don't know about pets but everyone is using some sort of excuse to "rip you off." Some are saying that there is a supply "problem", others are saying the high prices were caused by the Covid pandemic and now all the businesses have to "catch up" because of all the money they lost over the last 2 years. Of course, the war in the Ukrainian is a "wonderful" excuse to raise the price of gas.

My brother always said that 2022 would be a very interesting year and I believe him. I don't know where all this prices are going but as in the past, buyer beware. Good luck with getting a home for your little hairy friend! By the way, a price increase of 175% is way out of line. Our government is telling us that the consumer price is somewhere in the 5 - 7%. Boy, I wish! Like my brother said, "2022 is sure gonna be an interesting year."
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I will point out that in Ontario the Tennant and Landlord Board ONLY allows a small percentage of annual rent increase. This year (2022 ) the maximum rent increase is UNDER two percent. I know this because we have 2 rental units in our house here in Toronto. One is in the basement, the other is on the second floor. We live on the ground floor. Both of our female renters have a dog. We don't charge a extra amount for the pets as that is not allowed under the laws in Ontario. JimB.
 
jimintoronto said:
I will point out that in Ontario the Tennant and Landlord Board ONLY allows a small percentage of annual rent increase. This year (2022 ) the maximum rent increase is UNDER two percent. I know this because we have 2 rental units in our house here in Toronto. One is in the basement, the other is on the second floor. We live on the ground floor. Both of our female renters have a dog. We don't charge a extra amount for the pets as that is not allowed under the laws in Ontario. JimB.
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Good for you that you live in Ontario and there is some sort of rent control. I live in Manitoba and my rent is going up $21 on June 1 which is peanuts as far as I am concerned.

However, according to the media, the stories about rent increasing coming out of New Brunswick are bad enough to make a priest swear. Apparently, investors from Toronto have bought apartment building and these "lovely people" are going to raise up the rent $300 - $400. The poor pensioners on fixed income are forced to move out. Man! I'm sure glad I'm not a renter in New Brunswick.
 
When I moved in 4 years ago with my free roam rabbit I had to get a paper filled out by my doctor saying that I needed a companion pet. No deposit. No rent. And that was it. You can have two pets but only one can be your companion with no deposit. The deposit charged for cats is $100. and I don't know about dogs. My neighbor has one big dog and one small one. He lives right next door and I never hear any barking or anything from his apartment.

Everyone that has a dog picks up after them and they are really good about it. The cats.......well, it depends on the person who cares for them if they clean their litter boxes or not. One lady downstairs has not been doing that so much and people have been complaining about the smell. I don't know as I don't go down there too often. There are more cats here than dogs.
 
Packerjohn said:
Good for you that you live in Ontario and there is some sort of rent control. I live in Manitoba and my rent is going up $21 on June 1 which is peanuts as far as I am concerned.

However, according to the media, the stories about rent increasing coming out of New Brunswick are bad enough to make a priest swear. Apparently, investors from Toronto have bought apartment building and these "lovely people" are going to raise up the rent $300 - $400. The poor pensioners on fixed income are forced to move out. Man! I'm sure glad I'm not a renter in New Brunswick.
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I actually went to the website for the Government of New Brunswick's rental control agency and found that the MOST a landlord in NB can increase a tennant's rent per year is 3.8 percent. Here is the link. Read it for your self. Rent increases (gnb.ca) Actual facts, versus guesstimates, eh ? JimB.
 
oldaunt said:
I am utterly grateful I paid my little farm off last month. My yearly taxes are still cheaper than a month's rent anywhere.
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Yes, but things don't always work out so well for others. You need to understand people have challenges and worries as they are in or near retirement. Hopefully your farm will work out for you for many years to come.
 
@HoneyNut I sure hope you find what you want and it works out for you.

In my area, it's actually easier to find a complex that takes pets (mine only takes cats, they took dogs for awhile and the people downstairs from me got evicted because of their constantly whining dog. I put up with it for months before I complained.) and most don't ask for the additional monthly charge. (it's a rip off) Just the upfront pet deposit. It was harder when I moved here 25 years ago.

I wish I had bought a condo. I looked at probably a dozen over the years but never bought and now I can't figure out why. Prices are too high now since the fires.
 

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