If you are not personally involved with a matter, you can often see the funnier side of things. A recent letting industry story which has caught the attention of many people is the increase in “pet rents”. Things haven’t been easy for landlords since the Tenant Fees Ban, with letting industry professionals having to shoulder a lot more costs and fees.
We all know that there are issues caused in a home by pets, and for a good while, many pet owners were willing to pay an additional fee to cover any extra costs borne by a landlord. Of course, after the Tenant Fees ban, this is no longer permissible. However, the tenants’ lobbying group, Generation Rent, say they are seeing a “pet rent” charge of between £25 and £50 a month imposed on tenants with pets.
Not everyone agrees landlords should charge pets rent
The campaigns manager at Generation Rent, Georgie Laming, spoke out about pet rents and has said it is the wrong approach. She said; “Tenants are already paying their deposits and are liable for damage at the end of the tenancy. This is where landlords can charge for damage from pets – not through hiking up rents.”
One humorous element to the story was uncovered by the Guardian, who spoke to tenants’ affected by these charges. One man, Darren Baxter, talked to the paper and said; “It seems exorbitant given the potential damage a pet can cause. We went to one place where they wanted a reference for the dog. That was ridiculous.”
The notion of a landlord chasing up references for pets no doubt raised an eyebrow or even a chuckle for many reading the story, but it is a severe issue. Pets can damage rental homes, and their impact can lead to landlords paying a lot of money to ensure their property is in suitable condition for the next tenant.
Landlords have support from industry bodies
David Cox, who is the Chief Executive of ARLA Propertymark, believes landlords are in the right to impose this fee. Cox has also stated that he thinks it is the only right way for letting industry professionals cover the costs caused by pets.
Cox said; “This practice is a direct result of capping deposits under the tenant fees ban, as this problem didn’t exist before June 1. There’s been a long-standing campaign from the Dogs Trust, called Lets with Pets, which encouraged landlords and letting agents to take a couple of weeks extra deposit to cover the cost of a pet. But this practice is now unlawful under the ban and landlords are charging additional rent as it’s the only lawful avenue to mitigate the risk of damage from pets.”
We know things are rough (or even wruff) for landlord and tenants these days, and this sort of story sounds funny, but it will be a bone of contention for many. We are always here to help landlords and tenants, and if you need assistance, please get in touch.