Tenant Potentially Hiding Dog

[Wesley Jensen]

Hey all, I live and have a few apartments in Connecticut and I have a situation with one of my units. The lease has 4 people on it, a couple and two of their friends. I got a text from the couple a month ago saying they were thinking about getting a dog and asked how it works with the lease and if there were any breeds rhat were not allowed. I told them I take a $200 non refundable fee, the pet would have to be added to lease and all pet specific terms (already in lease) would have to be complied with, and told him to google “non insurable dog breed list”, but if they had any questions on a breed specifically I would email my insurance company. I hadn’t heard anything else about the dog until I texted about a window issue asking if I could be there to look at it in a few days. They responded asking how to get me the 200$ and that the dog they were thinking about needed to be adopted by this weekend or would be put in a pound. I asked what kind of breed and they sent me a picture of the dog and said German Shepherd. I emailed my insurance company and they sent me a screen shot of the policy clearly stating no German shepherds. I forwarded this along and they have now gone silent. I was at the apartment today to talk to the other tenants of the same apartment (it’s one apartment but two different sections of it), I saw a dog bowl and leash and asked the other tenant if they had gotten the dog and he stuttered and said it was for his parents dog when they stop by every once and a while. I walked around to the other section of the apartment and knocked on the door 3 separate time and waited 3-4 minutes overall with no answer (both cars were there). Called their cell phone and it was off. I left a message saying I hope they didnt get the dog and would look into the legal process of handling the situation, and to please call me back. So I have no proof they have gotten the dog, although it seems pretty clear. Because my insurance I can’t allow them to have it even if I wanted to... what can I do? Theres one lease for all 4 but can I provide a notice to quit to only two people on the lease? Also thinking if I provide to all that could produce some helpful peer pressure. I plan to stop by unannounced within the next day or so but assume they will keep avoiding me. Thanks for the help! -Wes

[Thomas S.]

Send the cure or quit notice to all on the lease since they are all in violation and see where it takes you. Make it clear you know they have a dog, not suspect, and make them prove otherwise. Landlords that take a vague position rarely succeed. Be firm and definitive regarding your position. The dog must go or they must go otherwise change your lease and your insurance company..

[John Mocker]

Wesley

Not all Insurance companies exclude German Sheppards.  Check with your agent to see if they have any other companies that can cover that breed.  If your agent does not have a market PM me and I will let you know what companies that indicate they can write that breed.  If the alternative Insurance is available but is more costly, you can offer them the options of paying the difference. 

If you allow the dog to stay I would also suggest checking your liability limits (on the dwelling policy and your umbrella) .   You may want to increase your Umbrella limit. 

[Mat O'Grady]

Hey Wes, 

I say serve the notice to quit to all of them. You told them what they needed to do. Now show them you are serious. The dog can go back to the pound. They won't want an eviction on their record and they will take care of the dog.

[Dennis M.]

If they are willfully ignoring the lease and lying to you then what else do they plan to keep secrets about and lie about in the future . A contract is a trust thing between two parties . It’s only as good as the two people signing it so you need to get this idiot straightened out . I’d be looking for ways to get rid of this tenant . Today it’s the dog ,tomorrow it’s dope

[Nathan Gesner]

Start the eviction. They will either get rid of the dog or they will leave.

[Nicole Heasley Beitenman]

If they hadn't lied to you, I would agree with @John Mocker. But they did, so they lose. I'd send them all packing. 

[Chris Szepessy]

If you knocked on the door and the dog didn't bark, then they either don't have a dog or they were out walking it. I've never seen a dog that didn't bark when someone knocked. lol

I have 4 dogs (3 are rescues) so I have a soft spot for people who want to adopt a dog instead of buy one from a pet store. However, even I would take the necessary steps to make sure they got rid of the dog or that they paid the difference in insurance rate (if you were willing to switch companies). 

[Wesley Jensen]

Thank you everyone for the advice! I did think about switching insurance but since they have not been forethcoming about the situation I don’t feel like I should go out of my way for them. My plan is to stop by unannounced and try to verify that they do have the dog. Right now it’s conjecture, although all signs point to it, I have no proof. After that I’ll proceed with the notice to quit and potentially eviction.

[Wesley Jensen]

So there has been a new development. I hsvs stopped by many times and have not seen the dog. Yesterday, my tenant texted me that he is planning on registering the dog as an emotional support animal, that he has issues since the military and thinks this is a good option. After reading the posts on here it appears I must request a letter from his mental health professional and verify it. And other than that my hands are tied. I spoke with my insurance broker about it and they are saying since the breed is not allowed by insurance they will have to find a new policy that allows this breed and it will be more expensive than my current policy. This doesn’t seem right, I am forced to allow the dog (and not charge any increases or fees/security deposit), but my insurance isn’t forced to allow it? Am I missing something? Any help would be great, thank you all so much for your advice and support!

[Wesley W.]

@Wesley Jensen  there are several very long, involved and informative threads on BP in just the last few months addressing the specific ESA issue.  I suggest beginning with a Forums search.

[Greg M.]

@Wesley Jensen:

First off, speak to your attorney about this before taking action. A few hundred dollars of attorney time can save you thousands. Your attorney probably has some other options to help you remove the dog/tenant. 

You have options:

1) Consider starting the eviction process now. The tenant broke the lease by having an animal. They did not get an ESA, they got a pet and have told you it was not an ESA as of this date. They also lied to you about it. This is not how a tenant gets an ESA in your property. 

2) If you can't evict, then non-renew at the end of the lease. You are not non-renewing because the tenant has an ESA, but rather due to the tenant breaking the lease before getting approval for the ESA and their lying to you. Tenants who don't follow proper procedures get non-renewed.

3) You may restrict certain breeds if your insurance would cancel your policy or increase rates. HUD states: If a housing provider's insurance carrier would cancel, substantially increase the costs of the insurance policy, or adversely change the policy terms because of the presence of a certain breed of dog or a certain animal, HUD will find that this imposes an undue financial and administrative burden on the housing provider. Sorry tenant, but my insurance will cancel my policy and other policies are more expensive. Therefore, I will need to deny your request for this specific ESA dog as it is not a reasonable accommodation. Please let me know should you have a reasonable accommodation request for a non-excluded breed of dog.