Rocco’s owner is not biased. Marcia and her husband found the Chihuahua - a "handbag dog" she calls it- more than seven years ago. “He was our first baby, and a test that we could keep something alive," Marcia laughs.
"We had been renting a unit next to our landlords, who also had a dog, so we were all quite happy.”
The trouble struck when the couple graduated from a fur baby to a real baby and needed to find more space.
They then faced a depressing on-again, off-again two-year search for pet friendly place that wasn’t “old, grotty, smelly or disgusting. And was enclosed for a pet.”
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They got lucky when they were put in touch with landlords Mel Rogers and her husband, who had bought a run-down house and just finished renovating it.
Mel, whose own animal count includes two rabbits and one cat, wanted to open the house to pets, having realised that for many people, animals are an important part of the family.
“We did what we would want to live in,” she says. “We think people with animals are good longer term tenants, animals are their children and they want a well-cared for place. So we created an environment that is good for kids and good for animals, with fencing, gates, easy care garden and a nice bit of lawn.”
Barfoot & Thompson Browns Bay New Business Manager Amanda Chue, who brought the two couples together, sees herself as the voice for families that have pets - well-behaved pets, that is.
“People don’t realise that pets can be disciplined. Unlike a child, a dog can go in a crate. It’s people who can be destructive,” she says. “But pet people want something that’s nice for them - they don’t want stained carpet either!”
When they’re renting to new people, Chue’s team will check out the owners’ references and check out the pet.
Amanda Chue with her own pet.
“We ask them to send photos to make sure that it really is a small or medium breed. We ask what they do with the pet during the day if they’re at work. Is it in doggy day care? We add pet clauses for things like de-fleaing or a deep carpet clean at the end of the tenancy.”
Chue’s sense that pet-friendly landlords open themselves to a wider market is borne out by recent research from Barfoot and Thompson. The company found that landlords can get premiums of about eight to nine percent for pet-safe properties, with some one in five of their North Shore and South Auckland landlords allowing companion animals. Housing New Zealand is also a pet-friendly landlord, with conditions around nuisance to neighbours if they barking, messing with rubbish, or becoming aggressive.
It’s more challenging for tenants in the inner city, where only two percent of landlords allow animals (and the price premium racks up to 49 percent higher). In West Auckland only 5 percent of landlords accept pets, but Chue points out that properties near bush, where yards can’t be fenced or animals can threaten native wildlife are not suitable for pets.
Marcia’s long house-hunting experience made her a savvy applicant - she knew to provide plenty of references, adding in photos of both child and dog to seal the deal. She also realises that treating the house as if it were her own puts the onus on her to keep Rocco happy and well-behaved. That includes, still, regular training sessions to be sure he doesn’t annoy neighbours (or other dogs) with barking. The Rogers are even installing a new cat door to give Rocco easy access to the garden.
“We’ve found that if the owner is a pet owner, they’ll understand that a pet is part of the family,” says Chue. “It opens up a whole market of people who make better tenants. They’ll appreciate the property, stay a bit longer as they want stability.”
Barfoot & Thompson’s five tips for house-hunting pet parents:
1. Be honest and upfront. Landlords appreciate tenants being straight up and may be open to the idea of a pet.
2. Include as much information about the pet in your application - the breed, the age, whether they have long or short hair, whether they stay home alone during the day, where they sleep.
3. Provide pet references from a previous property manager or landlord, vet, doggy day care or trainer. These go a long way.
4. Tenancy agreements can include a pet clause, outlining what will happen in the event of any damage. Landlords can also request the full four weeks bond.
5. It doesn't hurt to ask. Even if the ad says no pets, it's worth seeing if an exception can be made.
