Britain’s rental market is still giving pets the cold shoulder. That’s the word from Zero Deposit. Their latest dig into rental listings shows just 8% of properties welcome furry mates. This comes even as the Renters’ Rights Bill looms.
It’s set to stop landlords from flat-out saying no to pets. Across the UK, 51% of adults have a pet, yet only 8% of the 101,908 rentals on offer—7,788 homes—say pets are okay.
Sam Reynolds, Zero Deposit’s CEO, isn’t shocked. “There’s a natural reticence for landlords to open their property to pets for fear of the damage they can potentially cause,” he said. “Many will have experienced pet damage to their properties which has shaped this preference.”
- The North East leads with 9% of listings pet-friendly.
- London, the South West, South East, and North West sit at 8%.
- East of England at 7%
- East Midlands and Yorkshire & Humber at 6%
- West Midlands at 5%.
The government’s been nudging things along.
First, they tweaked the model tenancy to cheer on ‘well-behaved’ pets.
Now the Renters’ Rights Bill is coming. It’ll make it tough for landlords to refuse pets without good reason.
“But these landlords are swimming against an increasingly fervent tide,” Reynolds warned.
“The UK government is attempting to satisfy tenant demand for pet-friendly homes and when the Renters’ Rights Bill is finally introduced, landlords will find it increasingly difficult to deselect lets with animal companions.”
He gets the landlord side too.
“While public opinion is naturally in favour of improving accessibility for pet-owners, landlord concerns do hold weight,” he noted.
“Property damage costs money to repair. This spend can be challenging to recoup and can eat into profit margins.”
The bill’s got limits on deposits too.
“And while the Renters’ Rights Bill disallows the blanket banning of pets, it also limits the amount of money landlords are allowed to take from their tenants for security deposits, further exposing landlords to the risk of property damage and, therefore, to loss of income,” Reynolds added.
He’s got a fix in mind.
“It is possible that the bill will give landlords the right to insist that specific insurance is taken out to protect against pet-related damage, thus providing greater security,” he suggested.