All Forum Posts by: Rachel H.

 Great advice! Thank you! 

 Thank you, Joe! Any particular wording you'd suggest using in the lease to provide extra protection and guarantees for this? 

Hi everyone. I have an applicant for a rental house who has a 3-yr-old 78lb German Shepherd who is an emotional support dog. The house is new and has engineered hardwood floors, which are now in excellent condition. The tenant is ideal in every other respect - good references, long term stable high-level employment with a large national company, income equal to 7x rent, no excessive debt, excellent credit, no red flags, etc. - and he has said he clips the dogs nails every month to minimize any damage to any place he is staying. I *think* engineered hardwood is less likely to scratch, and I have emailed the builder to confirm, but not yet received a response. My questions are: how concerned should I be about damage or scratching to the floors, given all that? Should this be a dealbreaker? If I decide to allow it, what would you recommend I add to the lease for extra protection? I already collect a $250 pet deposit, but that seems like it would be only symbolic if, say, I had to refinish the floors. My gut says it's unlikely there would be so much damage that I'd have to refinish, but this is my first time with this issue. Any input or experiences appreciated! Thank you! 

Correct, and it's actually a bit more than that. That's why I'm concerned. But their combined income is $342K/yr, which is also a lot. So....should I be worried?? 

Hi everyone. I have applicants (a professional couple in their thirties) to rent a single-family home I own. They seem like fine people - no reason to believe otherwise. Their combined income is 7x rent. Their credit scores are both over 700. They were once homeowners, but have been renting for the past few years. My one concern so far with their application, though, is their combined credit card debt, which is four times that of the average US household, and twice as high as the average for their income bracket (they also have student debt and an auto loan). From their credit report, it appears they are making regular payments and haven't been late with any payments on anything in several years, so perhaps they just put their wedding on the cards or something and planned to pay it off, but I don't know. Is this a red flag? Given all of the above, should I be concerned or is it probably okay? Thanks for your input!

Thanks, everyone. I was definitely planning to charge a pet deposit, but I like the idea of increasing the security deposit and not specifying it's just for pets so I don't have to worry about proving that the pet caused the damage, although maybe I need to think that through more carefully. I wasn't sure about the pet rent, but now I realize it's probably a good idea on top of the extra security deposit because there will likely be additional cleaning required. 

Has anyone had any issues with odors that you can't get out after the pet is gone? I've had a dog for years and haven't had any issues, but I've heard it can be different with cats. 

Thank you so much for all your responses! 

Hi everyone. I have potential tenants who want to rent my house, and they have three dogs and two cats. Yeah, I know that's a LOT of pets. I've had a dog - a small dog - in my house for eight years, and there's been no serious damage. They said they've never had a problem with damage to wood floors or anything else, and these look like model tenants in other respects (sufficient income, clear background check, excellent credit, etc.). My question is: if I'd be okay with one or even two pets, and probably not too concerned about damage, should I still be okay with a total of five if they say damage is unlikely? Yes, I know tenants will say anything, but I guess I'm trying to figure out why multiple pets is that much worse than a single pet or two pets, except for the fact that it increases the chances of damage. The security deposit will be quite high to begin with, and I will charge an additional pet deposit and pet rent (though I'm still figuring out how much it should be, and would love feedback on that). Curious to hear all your thoughts and suggestions. Thank you in advance! 

Thank you. Yes, I've had an attorney draw up a lease agreement, but figured I would take this particular question to the forum. Okay, so I'm convinced at this point that I should have both of them do a background check and credit report, but should I list both as "tenants" on the lease, even if I know that she alone is not qualifying and I'm okay renting to them as a couple, but not her alone, since she couldn't afford the rent on her own? 

Right, but do I require that they both be "tenants" or can/should I require that only one of them - the one with the qualifying income - be listed as the "tenant" and his partner is listed on the lease as someone who will be residing there? Obviously, I'd rather get background checks and credit reports on both, but I know he's the one with the qualifying income and the one that I would pursue if there were any issue. I would not rent to her alone. If she goes on the Lease separately, that doesn't mean I'm agreeing to rent to just her if he leaves, does it? 

Thank you! I will be renting out the entire house and won't be living in it. So, you're saying I should have them each submit an application? That's okay, but can there be one single lease agreement where they are both listed as Tenants and the Lease Agreement makes it clear that they are both responsible for the Lease Agreement obligations? Also, his income is qualifying, but hers is not. I wouldn't expect both of theirs to be, necessarily, and I'm fine with just his income being qualifying. I should still have her apply, though? I guess, yeah, I should, so I can run the background check and credit report?