Landlords
If you are a landlord in the Carlisle area, read on!
Have you considered the benefits, for both you and your tenants, of allowing pets in your rental property? Oak Tree Animals' Charity receive many animals into our care every year who have been given up by loving owners because their rental property does not allow pets. Many of these owners are heartbroken at having to give up their pets, but are faced with a stark choice when needing a roof over their family's heads. We can work together to change this, all we need is your support.
As your local independent animal charity, Oak Tree understands the pet issues within our community and can help you take some simple steps to make your property pet friendly, which could hugely increase its demand. 45% of the UK population own a pet (statista.com), so it follows that tapping into this market could be extremely beneficial for landlords looking for responsible, long term tenants. The Chief Executive of the National Landlords Association, Richard Lambert said:
"Tenants who keep pets do tend to stay for longer periods of time, and there are a few simple steps that landlords can take in order to mitigate the perceived increased risks" (National Landlords Association).
Speak to your letting agent today and ask them to sign up to Oak Tree Animals' Charity Pets in Rentals scheme.
These are the simple steps you can take to make your property pet friendly, while mitigating the risks to you:
- Download our 'Pet CV' and 'Application to Keep a Pet' forms and ask potential tenants to fill them in so you know all about their pet and you can see evidence of responsible pet ownership.
- Download our 'Sample Pet Agreement' and use it to draw up your own contract. This makes it clear what you expect from the tenant and what their responsibilities are, whilst helping to mitigate risks.
- Consider taking out landlords' insurance with accidental pet damage cover so the maximum you would have to pay, should there be any damage, would be the insurance excess.
- If you are still undecided, ask your letting agent to advertise your property as 'Pets Considered', to allow you to decide on an individual basis.
Application to Keep a PetBy making your property pet friendly, you are opening up to that 45% of the population who are pet owners and wouldn't otherwise consider your property. You will have more choice of prospective tenants and could rent your property more quickly.
Local landlady Vicki Naish said: “As a pet friendly landlord in Carlisle, I have found that on the whole tenants with pets stay longer than those without. I haven’t had any problems with people’s pets and am happy to continue to advertise my properties as pet friendly.” (Vicki, Carlisle)
These are a few of the animals recently given up to Oak Tree by responsible owners who just needed a pet friendly landlord.
- Smudge* is a 12 year old cat who had been with her owners since she was a kitten. When her owners had to move home, they couldn’t find a rental property that would allow pets, so made the tough decision to give her up to Oak Tree. Having spent 12 years as part of their family, this was a heartbreaking choice for the owners to have to make.
- Lexi* is a 6 year old dog who had been a beloved family pet since he was a pup. Due to the health needs of one of the children in the family, they had to move to a property that would provide the extra support the child needed, but couldn’t find one that would allow pets. Sadly and reluctantly, they were left with no choice but to hand Lexi over to Oak Tree.
- Purdy* is a 13 year old Persian cat. The cat had belonged to the owner's mother until she passed away and the owner took on care of Purdy. The cat was a precious connection to her late mother, but when she had to relocate to shared accommodation for work she was unable to take Purdy with her.
Carlisle has the lowest proportion of pet-friendly rentals in the UK, meaning that often tenants in our region have to reluctantly give up their much loved pet to be able to find accommodation for their family.
Vet and animal advocate Marc Abraham, is supporting our Pets in Rentals campaign.
Marc says “Rescue pet adoption is a cause close to my heart, and it saddens me to think that any pet should find themselves abandoned just because their owners can’t find accommodation that will allow animals. I am totally behind Oak Tree Animals Charity’s Pets in Rentals campaign, which works to support letting agents and landlords to accept pets. The more pet friendly properties there are, the fewer heartbroken owners will have to surrender their beloved animals, and fewer bewildered animals will be left with rescue centres like Oak Tree. As a veterinarian and animal welfare campaigner, I urge landlords and letting agents in Carlisle and nationally not to be part of the pet abandonment problem.“
Local vet practice Paragon also support Pets in Rentals. Graham Lewis, one of the vets at Paragon said: "I was shocked at the figures for the area compared to the national average, pets are fantastic companions and great for mental and physical health. Plenty of pets are clean and have responsible owners so it is a real shame to see them excluded in this way."
For more information about how you can help please call 01228 560082 or email community@oaktreeanimals.org.uk.
* Names have been changed to protect confidentiality.