All Forum Posts by: Holly Jackson

Thank you so much for the replies. I really appreciate the time and thought!

I will definitely pay for rental insurance. Thank you for the reminder to mention that.

I have no former landlords since acquiring Grace. My dog was a non-issue in Sweden and Germany and since I've been back in the US I have not rented. I didn't anticipate being in a situation where I'd find myself renting, so I'm finding this whole situation rather frustrating, but I definitely understand the landlord's perspective because I would not want my property damaged or disrespected either.

I have stayed with my parents since I've been back in the country. My mother has two 15 year old cats and a 65lb Goldendoodle herself and keeps a beautiful home. My mother has a high-end home in a wealthy part of town and she would have asked me to leave if my dog had done damage to her home or her things.  Even though she's family, do you think a letter from Mom would have any sway? She offered to invite potential landlords to view her home as well.

The only other thing I could think of is to get referral letters from neighbors, all of whom adore Grace. I don't know if that would be impactful since the neighbors don't live with her. They can attest to her sweet nature and the fact that she's not a barker or a nuisance in any way.

Michael, I did think of offering to let the landlord(s) in to view the property while we're inhabiting the rental. I don't love that idea since it's a bit of an invasion, but I'm sure that I could live with it and consider myself lucky to do so. I imagine after a few visits that the visits would seem redundant...

I would also be more than willing to pay a higher deposit. How much do you think is reasonable? How high is enough to grab their attention? I sure do prefer to avoid non-refundable fees or monthly rent as I don't want to be nickeld & dimed continually when the dog simply will not be impacting the property. I understand it's a privilege to have a companion animal in a rental, but I'd like things to be fair to me financially since rental rates are already so high here, and also because I'm not overstating my case with this dog. In 8 years time, she's been a dream at every hotel, house, condo and room we've ever stayed in.

And, Aly, I'm waaaay on the other side of the country, but I'll keep you in mind if I decide to go sun-seeking :-)

(Myself and the slightly disheveled dog that's causing all kinds of grief as we rental house hunt)

Hi, everybody. My husband and I have been looking to rent a house in the Seattle area. I am a dog owner and I am finding that most rentals that are halfway decent are unwilling to even consider us when I mention my dog. Now, I understand why they adopt "no pet" policies and have already been stunned at the horror stories (and visuals) I've seen. These landlords are dealing with damage caused by pets AND by tenants who seem to be utter morons (Blue hair dye on the living room carpet. Really?). I feel bad for the landlords, but am dismayed that a couple of bad seeds are ruining it for everybody.

My question is this: Is there anything that would sway the "no pet" people to consider a truly lovely dog in their rental? If so, what would it take?

• I have owned my dog since she was 8 weeks old and that now means more than 8 years together.
• She is an SKK (Svenska Kennelklubben / Swedish Kennel Club) registered animal that I got in Stockholm. When I eventually moved back to The U.S., I brought her with me. Nobody on the plane knew that I had her under my seat until I pulled out the carrier at the end.
• She is a small Havanese at about 12 pounds.
• My Havanese is a hypoallergenic breed and non-shedding. Rather than an oily, stinky coat she has hair similar to a human.
• She is bathed & groomed regularly.
• She is on a preventative to stop potential issues with fleas, etc.
• She is not a barker. She does not have separation anxiety. She does not damage interiors. She does not damage exteriors: You can watch this dog move and she will not even break a leaf on a plant in passing. 
• She has completed a training class where she was the star of the class.
• I have been diligent in socializing her and training her. People regularly suggest to me that I be a dog trainer, tell me that they wish their dog was well behaved like mine, and welcome my dog back everywhere she goes.
• My dog has been on buses, planes, trains, ferries, bicycles, boats and everything in between. She has travelled and moved with me and does it all with ease. She even has a dog passport for travel between countries!
• I don't leave her unattended for long and take her with me whenever I can.  
• I go on "poop patrol" daily and clean up doggy landmines. (TMI, but these are Tootsie Rolls, not big nasty dog piles.)
• She is the calmest, sweetest, easiest dog on the planet; essentially a living stuffed animal. No, I'm not just saying that. She's a true gem.

I can guarantee with absolute certainty that my animal will not harm a property and I can also guarantee that if I did not inform the landlord that I had a dog (which I would never lie about) that he or she would never, ever know a dog had been in their home because she's not disgusting and doesn't damage anything, ever. If there were some extreme situation where she became ill I would take her to the vet and I would promptly clean up any mess, as I will not live in filth like some folks seem to.

The rental market is so hot in this area at the moment that it seems potential landlords need not even consider renting to pet owners. My husband and I feel that we are ideal tenants. We are good, clean looking and friendly, polite people. We spend our free time serving at our church and enjoying the outdoors. I have a green thumb and my husband and I are both handy at fixing these. We have enough cash to pay for several years rent, but we are not even getting to a point where we discuss that because, as soon as pets come up, landlords are emphatically opposed to considering us and our dog as tenants. I bring her in the car when I view homes so that they might meet her but no one has met her because, again, we can't seem to get to a place where they're interested in meeting her.

Folks, we are looking for a place that's a true home, and not just a place to crash. All of this hassle means that when we find the right place, we will take care of it and we will stay there until we're ready to buy, likely saving our to-be landlord from having to rent their place out yet again because we'll stay put. I didn't get this dog weeks ago; I have had her for 8+ years. I feel like my commitment to her, and all that comes with it, including the hassle of finding a proper home that will accept her makes me a more desirable tenant rather than less desirable. I am an extremely responsible pet owner and this little animal is a great joy to all neighbors and friends who cross our path. Does any of this mean anything to potential landlords?

I have been looking through old posts and scouring the internet for information, but I need to reach out for some advice, at least on one topic here. There is a property that I am interested in, and I have about a dozen different questions regarding this particular deal, but I will try to keep it sort of simple. This feels complicated, but I'll do my best to make sense here:

• Rather than flipping, there is a property I am interested in purchasing for myself to live in.
• This property is an REO.
• The dwelling is in bad shape and in need of (potentially) considerable rehab. Due to the condition of the home it is only available for cash or with a rehab loan.
• I woud co-own this property with a family member.
• I should close on my current home, hopefully this week, providing us with a good 50-65% of the purhcase price for the REO of interest.
• We need, probably, another 100k to $125,000 to secure the REO, in addition to the cash we will have to put into the REO.
• Because my family member is in the process of applying for a loan to build a home, after purchasing a parcel of land, it is not the time to make this second investment into the REO just yet. The building loan application will take another 1 - 2 months.
• Once that build loan is secured, I believe we would be extremely eligible for this much, much smaller loan for the REO, for example with a FHA 203k.

My questions:

1. Invisible loan: Is there a way to get a rather short-term loan that would not show up on financial checks, possibly with deferred payments, in order to avoid any interruption of the build loan currently being applied for?
2. Is there a way to acquire a private / hard money loan for a couple of months to secure the REO and get through this interim period?

I am not interested in doing anything foolish. We have never before borrowed in this fashion. I just can't think of another way to make this REO happen and I would hate to see the opportunity disappear because of the difference of a few weeks.

There is a whole lot more homework that I would need to do before proceeding with the REO purchase even if funds were available. I just don't want to entertain inspections, contractors and the whole kit and caboodle if there is probably no way to fund the entirety of this purchase without interfering with the build loan that is already under way.

Maybe there are other hitches that I am missing in terms of the guidelines for refinancing, possible barriers for a rehab loan, and so on. I realize that I don't know everything, but I am trying to be smart and think this through. Thank you so much for any help.