Americans love their pets. Indeed, according to a report by Spots.com<\/a>, a full 67% of American households, or some 84.9 million American families, own at least one pet. It almost goes without saying that it would be unwise for landlords to exclude pets entirely.<\/p>\n No matter how great you are at finding good rental property deals, you could lose everything if you don\u2019t manage your properties correctly. Being a landlord doesn\u2019t have to mean middle-of-the-night phone calls, costly evictions, or daily frustrations with ungrateful tenants.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n There is no hard rule for this, but generally speaking, you should always accept pets in houses. One of the major reasons people choose to rent houses over apartments is because they want to bring Rex and Felix along with them.<\/p>\n Excluding tenants with pets would reduce the number of potential tenants available to rent your property. As basic economics tells us, if demand goes down, the price (i.e. rent) goes down too. (Or even worse, the property just stays vacant.)<\/p>\n With apartments, it\u2019s a bit trickier. One loud dog could turn off fellow tenants or prospective ones, especially if it\u2019s an older apartment with thin walls. You also do not want to have hallways filled with dogs and cats (or iguanas and snakes) meandering about all over the place and leaving behind their calling cards to boot. Use your judgment based on your property and management style.<\/p>\n Dogs and cats are by far the most common types of pets people have. In the United States alone there are nearly 90 million dogs<\/a> and 95 million cats<\/a>.<\/p>\n Generally, I would recommend accepting tenants\u2019 requests for other small animals like fish, gerbils, or hamsters (which they probably won\u2019t even tell you about). I would, however, generally shy away from less common or exotic pets like pigs, rabbits, etc. You can make exceptions if you choose.<\/p>\n There are, of course, some legal points to keep in mind. First and foremost, if someone has a guide dog, seeing eye dog, or service animal, the Fair Housing Act requires<\/a> that a landlord accept that pet (and not charge a deposit for it). This is true <\/a>for any person who has \u201ca disability-related need for an assistance animal.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s less clear-cut with \u201cemotional support animals.\u201d According to ADA.gov<\/a>, \u201canimals that provide comfort just by being with a person\u201d are not considered service animals. Laws vary from state to state about a landlord\u2019s obligation to people with emotional support animals, so it\u2019s important to check with your local laws to make sure you are in compliance.<\/p>\n Your tenant application should have a spot on it about pets so you can make a determination before you get to the table to sign the lease. The lease itself should have a rider (a separate form on its own page) that lists each pet, along with breed and approximate weight, and is signed by all parties. You definitely want everything in writing.<\/p>\n
\n![\"managing](\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/managing-rental-properties.png\" "\\"What")
<\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/a><\/figure>\nBeing a landlord can be fun\u2014if you do it right<\/h3>\n
\nWhen to accept pets or not<\/h2>\n
How many and which types of pets?<\/h3>\n
Legal considerations<\/h2>\n
Pet references<\/h2>\n