Renting in Bergen County with a Dog or Cat
Bergen County, like most other locations, is not an easy place to be a tenant if you have a dog or cat. Unfortunately, too many irresponsible pet owners have made landlords leary of allowing any dogs or cats to be part of their tenant’s family. With the increasing popularity of small dogs and the perception that they are less of a problem, such as a designer dog, you can find that some buildings will allow a dog if it’s less than 30 pounds. However, more and more buildings will not allow any pets at all.
If you are considering a rental in a condominium or co-op building, it is imperative to verify what the regulations allow. Just because you see a dog or cat in the condo or co-op when you’re looking at an apartment doesn’t mean that the rules haven’t changed.
What I suggest to my rental clients in situations where there are no iron clad rules forbidding pets is to offer an additional security deposit for their animals. I call it a pet security deposit and often this allows a pet owner to secure the rental unit they want. Sometimes a landlord welcomes dogs and cats.
Here’s a new rental listing by Alexis Schmid of my office with a landlord who allows cats and dogs. It’s a 2 bedroom 1 bath rental apartment in this neat two family home. At $1,300 per month in the town of Westwood, NJ, it won’t last long. Welcoming pets is a smart idea – the landlord will get his apartment rented quicker and probably won’t have any vacancy cost. If you are in the area, have a dog or cat and are looking for a 2 bedroom apartment, call Alexis at 551-265-5929 before it’s gone.
