Pet damage and security deposits

In My Humble Opinion
1

Yeah, there are factual answers to this question but they’re going to vary so widely that GQ seems sort of silly. So I’ll put it more in terms of asking for personal experiences from the perspectives of landlords and tenants both. Mods, if you think it belongs in GQ anyway, feel free. This won’t be a situation for me for at least a year and a half, so I won’t be relying on the answers for anything. You’re not a lawyer, or you are a lawyer but not mine, etc.

Anyways, I have two cats and I pay an extra $10 per month in rent as a result. They’ve damaged some things (mostly chewing through cords of mini-blinds and biting through blind slats). I’m assuming that the extra rent will cover the costs of replacing cat-damaged items, so I’m wondering if anyone’s been in a similar situation, where they’ve paid extra rent for having pets and then had pet damage upon moving out. Did the extra rent cover it? Did your landlord try to charge for the pet damage separately? Landlords, how have you handled this?

2

Unless it’s specified in your lease otherwise, I believe the damages will be taken from your deposit. In essence, you pay the extra ten dollars as “rent” for the cat.

3

IME the way Lissa described it was how it worked.

4

As a landlord I don’t like pets. The extra rent does not cover damage, that’s why you paid a damage deposit. Animals do damage that their owners aren’t aware of, or refuse to recognize. One example is a central, forced air, heating system. Pet hair can wreak havoc and be expensive to remove. Then of course there’s the odor problem. Outdoor dogs often bark at nothing and tear up the grass and other plants, not to mention random deposits.