Hi Everyone,
This is my first post on the forum despite being a regular reader. My hubbie and I have just purchased our first investment property in Brissy. We purchased a house with a small back yard, which suited us from a low maintenence point of view. The property is due to settle at the end of next month which is very exciting.
We like the idea of making the property pet friendly to prospective tennants but would like to hear about what other's have experienced. We are thinking of restricting to small, mature pets. Is there anything we need to be wary of?
I must add that we found Richard Taylor on this forum
He was absolutely brilliant to deal with and we want to say a big thank you to him for being so helpful, efficient and knowledgeable. Looking forward to the responses
There is a large untapped market for 'pet friendly' housing. You may be able to consider charging a premium for 'pet friendliness' and also look towards some special conditions in the lease eg steam cleaning of carpet (but you are probably better off with hard flooring).
I can see how it might be an untapped market but heres a story for you, close to home.
Father in law rented one of his IPs (happened to be next door to him). He allowed one pet rabbit.
When the tennant moved out, he found lumps of sand outside and one wall cracked right through. To his amazement the rabbitS burrowed under the house, beneath the foundations.
We had to pull parts of the floor boards up, dig it out and we cemented all the holes.
Pets – hell no.
Damage caused by pets it definately a concern and your story Paullie highlights this. Did the insurance cover the damage?
We're still unsure as to what we will decide and being pet owners ourselves, we are well aware of how destructive they can be. On the other hand, we had to give up a dog we had because a previous property we rented would not allow pets, which was very disappointing.
Very tough decision
Put a clause in your lease agreement 'Pets only approved with prior approval of owner"
You can vet the type of pet permitted.
He didnt have insurance. He also self manages.
We've always allowed pets and have had no issues – it's also a handy way to boost the rental yield as pet owners are generally willing to pay more for a property that allows them to keep a pet.
Cheers
Jamie
Jamie Moore | Pass Go Home Loans Pty Ltd
http://www.passgo.com.au
Email Me | Phone MeMortgage Broker assisting clients Australia wide Email: [email protected]
Thanks for the replies. We have just found ourselves a PM who will start advertising the property and hopefully we will have a tenant ready and signed before settlement. 17 days to go
Should we be asking our PM to openly advertise that we will consider small pets? Or should we cross this bridge if a prospective tenant brings up the issue?
Thanks again
Hi Mezma,
No harm in advertising that pets will be considered. Can only add to your pool of potential tenants.
We always state pets considered – very rare that we have a tenant with a pet and when there has been it has never been a problem, Is it bad to say would prefer 4 legged or small 2 legged?
He was absolutely brilliant to deal with and we want to say a big thank you to him for being so helpful, efficient and knowledgeable. 
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