Will NYC Landlords Allow Pets?
While it is true that some landlords in NYC will allow pets, unfortunately most do not. In fact, pet owners looking for an apartment for rent in NYC will quickly learn to ask landlords the questions “Do you allow pets?”.
NOTE: To search for NYC apartments, go to frele.com (free service). Or, click for more rental tips
Here’s why:
As a real estate agent – especially in my early years – I can’t tell you how many times the conversation of a “pet” never came up to the detriment of everyone. I learned to ask whether the landlord will allow pets or not very early in the process.
Many landlords in NYC do not allow pets, and if you get too far along in the application process without addressing this issue, it can come back to haunt you if you have a pet and you are applying to a “no pet” building. Some renters even think they can “sneak” in their pet. Do not think this. These no pet policies are very strict, and those tenants who live in “no pet” buildings will also ensure that they are enforced.
WHY MANY LANDLORDS WON’T ALLOW PETS.
For “city-living”, having pets in apartment buildings usually just creates headaches for landlords. There are liability costs associated with pets biting people (usually dogs), noise issues (usually barking dogs), and major cleaning issues (usually cat pee which smells really bad).
When the vacancy rate is low and apartments rent very fast – as they usually do in New York City – a landlord’s take on the matter is: why should I take a risk? When the market “softens” a little bit and rental apartments sit on the market longer, some landlords who once shunned pets sometimes change their tune and allow pets, but don’t count on this. Ask first.
NO DOGS BUT CATS OKAY
While it is true that cat pee really stinks and stains, landlords are usually not too restrictive with cats. A “no pet” policy is usually targeted at dogs for the reasons stated above. So, if you have a cat and you are applying to a building strict on having dogs, it is usually not a problem even if at first you may think the landlord does not allow pets…but ask first.
BREED AND SIZE RESTRICTION FOR DOGS
Unfortunately, even if a landlord’s policy is to allow pets, it does not mean that your pet will be approved. Aside from the obvious pet type restrictions (monkeys, tigers, etc.), landlords often put restrictions on the breed and size of your dog. For example, landlords may ban Pitbulls and Rottweilers. They also may not approve any dog above a certain weight, usually 40 or 50 lbs (Hint: Get your dog on a diet today!)
MORE THAN 1 PET? BE CAREFUL EVEN WITH LANDLORDS THAT ALLOW PETS.
Another one that really got me into trouble was not asking my client (renter) early in the process “how MANY dogs do have”? Renters, buyers, and brokers often don’t realize that buildings that allow pets very often have restrictions on the number of pets as well. There are several buildings for example that only allow one dog per unit. For those buildings if you have two dogs you are out of luck, unless you are willing to part with one of them, which of course is not easy to do.
LANDLORDS THAT ALLOW PETS OFTEN REQUIRE ADDITIONAL SECURITY DEPOSITS
Finally, note that if the building does allow pets, they may require an additional security deposit. An additional security deposit of $500 to $1000 per pet is common in NYC.
On my website frele, we have thousands of NYC apartments for rent. Don’t worry, many of them allow pets and you can set this filter as a criteria when searching. We are a totally free site!
For more NYC rental tips, please go to frele.com/learn.
This article was written by:
Phil Horigan, NYC Real Estate Veteran
Founder, Frēlē, the free and honest NYC rental marketplace
Producer, Phil’s NYC Rental Tips [YouTube Channel]
Blogger: flowfreely.com
Instagram: @philiphorigan
Phil has been a licensed NYC real estate agent since 2004 working for some of the top real estate brokerage firms in the industry. He founded Leasebreak.com in 2013, and Frēlē in 2017. Frēlē and Leasebreak are free and transparent rental marketplaces to search for or post apartments for rent in NYC
Phil shot the video in the blog post with The Corcoran Group “pet friendly” real estate agent Robert Herskovitz. Robert can be reached here on Corcoran’s website or on Instagram: @adventures_in_ dogs_and_re
You can contact Moe, the foster dog (and even adopt him) by going here. The Mighty Mutts webpage can be found here.
Go to frele.com to search for NYC apartments (free service).