hidden cat

7 Reasons Never To Sneak a Pet into Your Apartment

Whether your pet is a cat, a dog, a bunny or a bird, it’s never a good idea to sneak an unauthorized pet into your apartment if there’s a no pets policy in place. Getting caught by neighbors or during routine maintenance visits can give you several negative consequences to follow. If you want a companion animal as a renter, there are several apartment communities that are pet-friendly.

If you’re eager to adopt a new pet but happen to live in an apartment that does not allow pets, it’s probably best that you start searching for a new property that caters to animals and renters alike. As tempting as it is to quietly sneak the pet into your apartment, it’s never worth the risk.

We’ll highlight all of the reasons why sneaking an unauthorized pet into your rental home is a very bad idea. We don’t want to scare you but we do want to illustrate why it’s best for you and the pet to follow the rules outlined in your lease agreement.

Cute puppy

Understanding pet rent and pet deposit fees

Some apartment communities allow pets if you pay certain fees. Other apartment complexes strictly forbid pets. If you’ve found a pet-friendly apartment, it’s important to understand the difference between all the fees.

Pet rent

A non-refundable fee that you owe each month on behalf of your pet. The landlord will charge you rent on behalf of your animal. Typically, this ranges between $50 and $100 per pet each month.

Pet deposit fee

A one-time payment is usually collected by the landlord when you sign the lease. Like a security deposit, it’s collected as insurance in case your animal ruins the floors, walls or doors.

These different pet payments will vary and the property manager has the discretion on how much to charge. These are applicable for pet-friendly or pet-tolerant apartments. However, if your apartment complex does not allow any animals, it’s a different story.

Reasons to never sneak a pet into an apartment

When you sneak a pet into the apartment, you’re violating the lease and risking everything from hefty penalties to eviction. Even if you’re tricky and do a great job hiding your pet, if you get caught, you’re in for a world of trouble.

Having an unauthorized pet is not worth the risk for you or the pet itself. Here are some of the things that can happen to tenants who have an unauthorized pet in their home.

Letter charging fines

1. You could be charged expensive fines

Depending on the lease agreement, you may owe a fine for sneaking a pet into your place. The landlord can charge tenants a hefty sum, as outlined in the lease. While shelling out unnecessary money isn’t fun, this is one of the less severe consequences of having a cat or dog in your place when the lease doesn’t allow pets.

2. You may lose your security deposit

You may lose some or all of your security deposit if an unauthorized pet damages the structure of the property. For example, if you sneak a dog into your property and the dog scratches the front door, pees on the carpet and chews the walls, you’ll lose your security deposit upon the final inspection. Again, this is a small consequence of having an unauthorized pet on the property.

3. You’re in breach of the contract

When you rent property from a landlord and sign the lease, you’re signing a legally binding agreement. You agree to follow the terms and conditions outlined in the lease. When you disregard the lease, you’re breaking the contract you signed, which can have legal consequences.

If you signed a lease that explicitly stated a no-pet policy, you can’t bring in a dog or other pet into your home, even if you’re just pet-sitting for a family member or friend. Depending on the lease and your landlord, you may owe a fine or face eviction because you breached the contract.

This will also hurt your credibility when it comes to renting future spaces. You don’t want your current landlord to tell a future landlord that you violated the lease. That will never look good on your record or work in your favor.

4. You may have to re-home your pet

You love your new dog dearly and were looking forward to bringing him home with you. But then, Rover wouldn’t stop barking and the neighbors turned you into the landlord for having a pet. If you’re not in a place to switch complexes, your landlord may force you to re-home your pet. That’s a terrible situation for both you and your dog.

Sneaking a pet into your home might cost you your pet. However, you should know that a landlord can’t take your pet from you, but they can evict you if you don’t re-home the animal.

5. You could have to switch apartments quickly

If you’re unwilling to re-home your animal or get a family member to take it, you might have to switch apartments quickly. With short notice, finding a new rental property is expensive, difficult and stressful. You’ll likely be charged fines from your current place and your future landlord will want rental application fees along with the first and last month’s rent. If you’re not in a financial situation to take on these extra expenses, don’t risk it. Also, you’ll be lucky if you’re simply being asked to switch apartments. Some places might even evict you.

Eviction notice

6. You could potentially be evicted

No renter wants to face eviction. This is a death sentence for renters for several reasons. First, you’ll have to immediately find a new property to rent. Second, eviction looks terrible on your rental and credit report and may make it difficult to even find a new place to call home. And third, you may still have to dole out monthly rent for the old place if you signed a year lease. If you break the terms of the rental agreement, your landlord has the legal right to evict you.

7. You could be sued for unpaid rent

If you broke the rental agreement and are therefore evicted, you could still be legally responsible for unpaid rent. Rental management may sue you for the remainder of your unpaid rent. For example, if you’re evicted six months into your 12-month rental agreement, you could legally be on the hook for those last six months’ worth of rent. On top of legal fees, this could cost you a hefty sum.

How to bring your pet into your apartment the right way

If you’re an animal person and want a pet, then make sure you bring your cat or dog into the apartment the right way. As an animal lover and renter, make sure you’re searching for pet-friendly apartments and that you fully understand the terms of your lease agreement so you aren’t in violation of it. You can have your pet (and walk it, too) by talking to your landlord and following the rules.

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