Lack of pet-friendly rentals pushing owners into homelessness or abandoning animals
AUCKLAND landlords’ negative attitudes towards pets are forcing animal lovers to choose between becoming homeless or giving up their furry companions.
Birkdale’s Jasmyn Rose found herself having to find new accommodation after her landlord sold the house she was living in.
She was determined to bring her 11-year-old cat Chayse with her, but had such a hard time finding a pet-friendly rental she missed her move-out deadline.
She found ‘‘90 per cent’’ of the houses were listed as ‘‘no pets’’ by default and the few that allowed them were hotly contested. As a result, she and her three children, all aged under 6, ended up in government emergency housing.
‘‘It was horrible. The other tenants partied every night, and we were getting bitten by bed bugs.’’
To get her family into suitable housing, Rose applied for any house she could find, and was recently accepted into a house on the North Shore.
However, her landlord hasn’t allowed her to move Chayse in, and Rose has had to make the hard decision to try to rehome the family pet. ‘‘He needs someone who can give him attention because he’s a really affectionate cat. Otherwise, he spends most of the time outside or sleeping.’’
Rose said Chayse had never damaged any of the homes he had lived in. She said landlords who said no to pets by default were missing out on potentially great tenants. ‘‘It’s worth taking a look at a pet at a viewing. A good pet is usually a good indication about its owners as tenants.’’
Central Aucklander Sonia Helene has been looking for a rental for herself, her partner and their 1-year-old indoor cat Rafiki. She has been searching for two months and has managed to extend her current rental to ensure a roof over their heads, but the extended lease ends next month.
They are looking for an unfurnished house, so there is no risk to landlords’ furniture, and have been providing a letter of recommendation for Rafiki from their current landlord. ‘‘He is fantastic and doesn’t destroy or scratch anything besides his cat tower. He mainly sleeps all day and plays with his toys.’’
Helene and her partner are looking for houses in central and east Auckland but are finding petfriendly rentals are either out of budget or in substandard condition. They are willing to pay $500 per week.
Data collected by Barfoot and
Thompson shows pet-friendly Auckland rentals cost an average of $20 a week more for a threebedroom house, and $34 more for a five-bedroom.
Central Auckland suburbs command the most in pet premiums, with pet-friendly rentals there costing an average of $125 more a week in central eastern suburbs.
Barfoot & Thompson property management general manager Samantha Arnold said of the company’s 16,000 properties in Auckland, about 14 per cent allowed for pets. That was up on 11 per cent in 2017.
‘‘It would seem more landlords are warming to the idea of pets in their properties. With higher rental returns from allowing pets, the risk of damage can be partially mitigated,’’ Arnold said.
North Shore and Rodney had the highest proportion of petfriendly rentals, at 23.4 per cent and 22.3 per cent respectively.
Arnold said the two main reasons that deterred landlords from pets were inadequate fencing and the risk of damage to investment properties.
According to the NZ Companion Animal Council, 64 per cent of New Zealanders own a pet, and more than half of households who don’t have a pet want one.
Thirty-seven per cent of respondents said that not having a suitable home was the biggest barrier to pet ownership. A third said they were in rented accommodation that did not allow pets.