No pets on lease

[tats]

I recently got a puppy as a present for my birthday but I live/own a flat in a Mansions block. There is a no pets clause on the lease and I'm worried about this. Has anyone had a similar experience or any advice?

[MrsRottie]

Haven't really got a clue - but surely it's a good thing that they haven't put in a 'no-pets' clause?
My brothers just rented a new place, most house details were extremely definitive when it came to pets or not. Sadly usually not....

Have a friendly word with your landlord - I'd be tempted to speak with them first rather than let them find out, but then that's just me!!

Good Luck!

[lassie]

Hi i would have a word before somebody else does did you intend and was you prepared for a puppy?

[dlambertz]

i would say if there is a no pets clause on the lease and you violate it, you will be either asked to get rid of the dog or move. maybe be fined...
this is a perfect example of why pets should never be given as a gift... the pet tends to find itself homeless and maybe in a shelter situation.

[DownToEarth]

You said you live/own?? Do you own or rent? If you own, then I don't see the problem...if you rent...then the lease is probably not going to change, but it can't hurt to ask...maybe the landlord is a closet dog lover...they do have a tendency to be more concerned with puppies though because of the potential damage from chewing and pre-housebreaking. Maybe you can offer some extra towards a security deposit for any potential damage.

[dlambertz]

You said you live/own?? Do you own or rent? If you own, then I don't see the problem...

even if you own in certain situations there are stipulations. my grandmother owns a condo... they have a clause ..."no pets allowed on premises" i can't even take my dogs on the property. my brother lives in a very exclusive neighborhood. they have a clause (you are aware of this before buying or building in that neighborhood) no fences allowed and color of homes are restricted to certain hues. no cars are allowed to be parked in the driveway for over 24 hours and no boats or rv's are allowed to be parked there at all.

point is if there is a governing contract homeownership does not matter. you are made aware of any restrictions before you purchased the home or condo.

[jem]

Don't even worry about the wording in the lease. Check the tenant laws in your city instead. My city had a non-profit tenants association and when I asked them about this matter, I found out that it was illegal in my city for a landlord to put a "no pets" clause in a lease. Essentially, landlords would put it in a lease to deter pet owners, but once you moved in with your pets there was no legal action they could take, so it wasn't an issue.

The building I moved into had a "no small pets" clause right on the lease, but we just didn't tell them we had dogs. When we moved in, we found out that there were dozens of dogs in the building.

I don't think it's like that everywhere though, so check with your local tenant's association for the laws in your area - you never know what you'll find out.

*JEM*

[Roxy5256]

It's true, I went through this once and found out that I didn't even legally have to mention that I owned pets to a landlord and there was nothing they could do once I moved in.