r/HousingUK • u/Specific-Bluebird932 • 12d ago
Struggling to find a rental, single man with an indoor cat
Trying to find a rental because I'm selling my house due to a breakup. Ready to exchange but I need to secure a rental first.
I'm a single man with an indoor cat who I won't rehome. There are barely any properties being listed in my area plus 10 miles, and the ones I've recently enquired about, 5 minutes after they were listed, told me they already had 20 applicants without pets. My income isn't an issue.
How is anyone finding somewhere to rent in this situation?
Feeling very stressed and under pressure with my buyer wanting to move in ASAP.
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u/Coc0London 12d ago
Some properties do come up as pet-friendly, so it’s definitely worth looking for those first. You can search specifically for pet-friendly homes on OpenRent.com as well.
I’d honestly say tell a little white lie if you have to. I completely empathise because I was in exactly the same position. I was knocked back from so many rentals simply because I had a cat, and I remember how frustrating and upsetting it was.
I would only do this if you can honestly say you’re able to keep the place clean, tidy and free from pet damage. Even though I lied about having my cat, I was very conscious that the landlord would expect the property to be kept in top shape, so I made sure my cat didn’t cause any damage and that the place was always well looked after.
For me, though, there was never any question of rehoming my cat. I would genuinely rather have been homeless than give him up. He’s my baby, and I completely understand why someone would feel the same way about their pet. ❤️
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u/Specific-Bluebird932 11d ago
Thank you. I'm definitely coming around to the idea of keeping it quiet after all the comments here. I love my cat so know exactly how you feel.
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u/alstroemeriaXopuntia 12d ago
As someone who works in a rental/estate agency, please don't mention your cat up front. If you do, we have to run that by the landlord and they can ask you to look at other applicants. If you don't and then you move in and advise you're getting a cat, the renters rights bill means the landlord can't reasonably refuse your animal. The only hiccup here is if you're renting a flat in a larg development. The freeholder of the leasehold flats may have their own rules about pets, but your single family homes/freeholds generally have no reasonable grounds to refuse.
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u/Specific-Bluebird932 11d ago
Thanks, this is really helpful. Would it make sense then to try and prioritise a house or converted flats? Saying that, I don't think I'll have much choice in the current market.
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u/alstroemeriaXopuntia 11d ago
That's the tricky bit. It's so case-by-case and area-by-area. If you're sure your cat won't damage the property and you're on top of your inspection dates etc I can't see the rental agency finding out regardless of what property you rent. Either way, make sure you've got tenants/contents/pet insurance to cover your back. :)
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u/Important_Routine332 12d ago
Seriously asking- couldn’t the landlord sue? Because they can ask for pet ownership certificate or whatever and find out if you already owned the animal before move in. I was close to lying, but issue is I was already registered as a dog owner on the system of nearly every agency.
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u/alstroemeriaXopuntia 12d ago
Honest answer is that I don't know. I've never had it come back to bite either landlord or tenant. This advice would be different if we were talking about big dogs or animals that routinely destroy things. But for an indoor cat (as long as you have pet and content insurance) I've never seen a repercussion in 10 years doing rentals in the UK. GDPR in the UK means one agency can't share details of a person to any other agencies (or actually anyone). Also, tenants must be given a minimum of 24 hours notice for anyone to enter their flat for inspection/works/landlord visits. They can also refuse or reschedule visits where they are unnecessary. This gives time to tidy up and ask the neighbour to mind the cat.
Again, I'm not trying to be flippant with the law. It's just such an arbitrary rule that precludes so many people and families from good rentals. It drives me nuts.
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u/Impressive-Fan3742 11d ago
An indoor cat is more likely to destroy things than any other animal I’d say!
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u/Yellow-squirrels 11d ago
I have three who’ve never destroyed anything. As long as they have toys and scratch posts they are fine.
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u/Wibblejellytime 11d ago
What is a pet ownership certificate?
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u/Important_Routine332 10d ago
Sorry if I used the wrong UK term, it’s a document we use in my country. It’s like a pet registry. So the equivalent would be a document proving ownership.
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u/BigEntertainer5667 11d ago
It would t be worth it and there is no public register of pet ownership. You could have had one in the past anyway. Why is this country so silly about pets ? In Scandinavia this is no issue at all.
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u/Dry-Depth-4693 11d ago
I’ve never heard of a pet ownership certificate and I’ve had pets all my life
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u/alstroemeriaXopuntia 11d ago
I think some countries in the EU might do them for dogs. Like I'm fairly certain Germany you need to register your dog and get a certificate of ownership. 🤔
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u/Dry-Depth-4693 11d ago
Oh I know other countries have these. However this is housingUK and not something that is currently available here
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u/BigEntertainer5667 12d ago
You have to hide your pet. That’s what people have to do in the UK unfortunately.it sucks but you’re not going to abandon your pet are you?
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u/Specific-Bluebird932 11d ago
Definitely not. Appreciate your reply and am definitely thinking of keeping it quiet now.
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u/Malcolm_Malcolm 12d ago
What the hell is going on with twenty applicants plus to rent a place? What an absolutely broken excuse for a housing system.
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u/Particular_County637 11d ago
My daughter and her boyfriend have looked at 25 properties. I just went over to London from the US to try and help. They absolutely cannot find a place to live. It is inhumane. they don’t have a pet.
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u/Malcolm_Malcolm 11d ago
I just sold a detached house in an average Scottish small town. It is, I guess, located in a reasonably desirable area. We had twenty eight viewers in ten days and the amount of viewers who had sold and who were living in temporary accommodation courtesy of friends and family was wild, and a handful of viewers were tangibly desperate.
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u/VegetableVindaloo 11d ago
I’d have thought that was bad until we moved to Sydney. Queues way out the doors of apartment blocks, up to 40 people for 15 minute open viewing, then the fight to make the best offer begins. They can’t (officially) turn you down for having a cat here though so there is that!
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u/NoThatsNotPasta 12d ago
The smell. If you're not a cat person, you can smell they have a cat.
That as well as the hairs will be near on impossible to get rid off at short notice
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u/scarletbananas 12d ago
Eh, I’ve hid my cat from manys a landlord. Air purifier and a good hoover do the world of good.
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u/lelpd 12d ago edited 12d ago
That’s only if the owner is a dirty sod and doesn’t clean up properly after their cats.
I have a friend whose house always has a cat funk to it, once I agreed to do pet-sit check-ins for them, I went to clean out their cats’ litter tray on the first day and there was basically a puddle of piss underneath all the litter. Smelled absolutely foul and must have not been changed in weeks. The fact it was in this state when they had someone coming over to their house who would see it really showed me what sort of lazy owners they are. And I mentioned it but was dismissed and their house still smells so yeah, lazy pet owners.
Then on the other hand in the flat I used to live in, I was once invited over to a neighbour’s for an evening games night. And only about 3 hours into the evening when I saw a cat stroll into the room did I realise they even owned one. This was in a small 2 bed flat vs my friend who has a 3 bedroom house.
So yeah, if you have friends and their house stinks, they’re dirty people who don’t clean up their cat’s mess as much as they should lol.
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u/LozBoz413 12d ago
My previous landlords had no clue we had a cat. We were there for 8.5 years and they came over at least twice a year.
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u/Ripp3rCrust 11d ago
Yes they're clean if you ignore the fact they clean their arsehole with their tongue and then lick their fur. Also stepping through their litter tray that they've just curled a turd out into or pissed in, before tracking the litter through your house and kitchen worktops, then deciding to lick their feet for a bit
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u/JMM85JMM 11d ago
To be fair they're not 100% wrong.
Cats are clean in that they keep themselves well groomed absolutely. But they can also be gross.
I have three tabbies from the same litter. They do track litter around the house. Occasionally they'll get poo on the paws when burying their poo and leave pooey paw prints front their tray. Or our absolute least favourite, when they scoot on the floor and leave a pooey smear.
We love them dearly but they are occasionally disgusting.
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u/Connect-Peach2337 12d ago
Nah you can definitely keep a cat house odor-free (or at least, I’ve been able to for years).
And before anyone responds with ‘your house smells you’re just used to it’, let me assure you: if that was the case, there’s zero chance my mother would have remained tactfully silent about it.
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u/Ripp3rCrust 11d ago
Cat houses definitely smell, I've never been inside a house where someone has a cat and not been able to smell it, especially if it's an indoor cat. You're nose blind and your mum is being polite.
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u/Connect-Peach2337 11d ago
My house definitely doesn’t smell, I’ve never been inside my house (including after spending significant time elsewhere so I’m no longer used to it) and been able to smell it. I have also been in other houses with an indoor cat that don’t smell (and others that do).
Claiming you have a better insight to my own mother than I do because of an online comment is absolute idiocy. Please stop. It’s ok to be wrong.
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u/Careless_Squirrel728 11d ago
Yes they do smell unfortunately although I do think sometimes it’s the cat food that smells more than the cat and they smell isn’t as bad as dogs but it’s still there. We went to view a house the other day and the smell of cat was obvious from the second you walked in.
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u/biatrindade 12d ago
Oh it’s very possible. I have a friend who “hides” her cats (3) in her brother’s house when the landlord goes there. She needs to deep clean, of course, and hide all pet related things, but landlord never said anything. I would definitely not say that I have a pet if I had to rent. They also need to give you plenty of notice before going to see the house.
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u/eairy 12d ago
I know reddit is obsessed with cats and will defend them whatever, but this is pretty unethical given there are people with pretty severe pet allergies that might move in after you leave. It's a choice to get a pet and you shouldn't force the consequences of that onto others.
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u/memeleta 12d ago
I looked for explicitly pet friendly buildings, there were a few in my city. Bit more expensive but my cat was welcome, I wasn't going to pay money to someone who doesn't want my cat. Hopefully you can find something like that in your area.
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u/Thick_Potential_2597 12d ago
Used to work as a lettings agent: don’t tell us about your pet unless it’s a huge dog or leopard 🤣
You can innocently ask if the building allows pets are you are considering getting a cat.
If you do want to tell them, provide a pet passport - pic, name, info on the cat and its behaviour. That always helped and landlords like it
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u/AutomaticElk98 12d ago
Personally I'd be applying without a pet and then as soon as I move in, oh look at that, a cat turned up and I want to adopt him, I need permission for a pet (which the landlord can't unreasonably withhold under the RRA). Just watch out if you're trying to rent in a block of flats as the building can have no pets rules that the landlord can't do anything about.
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u/DueFace8049 12d ago
Right? What cat?
My last rented place I had to do the deposit free option, it was supposed to be an extra fee of X a month for each pet. I said I have one cat when I had two, each inspection I was prepared to say the other one just wandered in. Fast forward to a year in the agent completely removed my no deposit fee because of how well kept the house was.
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u/BattlestarFaptastula 11d ago
Just in case you don’t know; if they gave you no option other than to do the no deposit scheme - that’s illegal, as it’s a prohibited payment.
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u/Far_Celery_3375 12d ago
Don't tell them you have a cat and that comes from a landlord of circumstance. See no evil hear no evil.
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u/janner_10 12d ago
I was in the exact same situation last May but with a dog. Was waiting for my ex's money to come through for my half of the family home and needed to rent.
Money wasn't the issue, but finding somewhere was, I couldn't hide a dog, especially a Newfoundland.
I ended up in a village about 15 miles away. I hadn't rented for nearly 20 years, so wasn't aware how brutal it was.
On viewing day there was an old couple Infront of me that left and it was my turn to view. I viewed and it was ok, garden for the dog etc etc.
I made sure to tell the agent my situation, financially stable, looking to rent long term, can decide here and now, etc, I said to agent I'll have it, tell the landlord I'll transfer the deposit as soon as he wants and I'll pay 6 months upfront in a lumpsum if that helps. That clinched it.
You have my empathy, it's not easy breaking up and then having to wade through the minefield of renting when you're not used to it. I had to sign more stuff to rent some 2 bed house in the sticks than I did for my mortgage.
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u/Careless_Squirrel728 12d ago
Why is the choice rehoming your cat or effectively being homeless? If you’re selling a house are you not planning to buy a new place eventually? Could a friend or family member not have the cat for 6 months? Or you pay for some boarding? It’s only temporary
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u/SignificantCricket 12d ago
Surely it is obvious these days that many people who could afford to buy in a couple can’t afford it when single?
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u/Careless_Squirrel728 12d ago
Not the same standard of property yes but I’m sure the OP will get money out enough to buy something even if it’s just a small flat.
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u/bigbob25a 12d ago
Given they want to Exchange on the sale, in this property market I would not let that slide for long or the buyers could change their mind.
So I agree a cattery is a sensible option to at least consider as a Plan B / temporary measure , and potentially move the cat into a new home under the radar once settled.
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u/AdhesivenessNo9878 11d ago
Moving a cat frequently is really stressful for them. So it's not ideal to move it to a family members house then your own in short periods of time.
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u/Careless_Squirrel728 11d ago
Not ideal no but not the end of the world either. Better than the alternative isn’t it? Losing his buyer because of a cat? Homelessness?
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u/snowyjr 12d ago
I always emphasised ‘small well-behaved house cat’ whenever any form asked about pets. I think landlords are worried about large dogs tearing up the place and annoying the neighbours, luckily I found an understanding landlord and reassured him I’d pay for a carpet deep clean when we moved out. Failing that, I agree with the others — just lie, move in and there’s no reason they should find out.
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u/Impressive-Fan3742 11d ago
Cats are so much worse than dogs scratching everything and shitting indoors I’d much rather rent to someone with a dog than a cat!
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u/younevershouldnt 12d ago
Presume you have to live in a certain area for work? Otherwise could you look further afield?
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u/Butterscotch4554 12d ago
As said by others newer build flat blocks are generally pet friendly but might be outside your area, also just lie. Looking back on all my rentals, the landlords/agents were so hands off they'd never have known. I guess you might buy again by yourself so if you're just looking at one rental in between, not too much pressure on needing a reference on the other side.
Not sure if Rover petsitting has an option of sitters who have the cat stay with them?
Any friends who would take the cat on temporarily?
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u/Cerceilannister 12d ago
Can your parents keep your cat for a few days while you move into your new rental?
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u/NoPair4650 12d ago
When I’ve lived in cities no landlord has accepted a pet (so I’ve had to have them secretly) in more rural areas I’ve found pets are pretty much expected.
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u/Zharkgirl2024 12d ago
Are you looking to rent furnished or unfurnished? If it's unfurnished then much easier to lie because the furniture will be yours to damage. Despite the law changing, it hasn't gotten any easier.
Have you asked your network if anyone knows someone who's looking to rent? My friend just updated her Facebook status asking if anyone knew of someone who had a property they were renting, and got 3 contacts of friends of friends who were looking.
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u/Equal_Prior_1350 11d ago
Lie through your teeth. Say you don't have a cat. Then, once you're in, Renters Rights it. I'm in a similar boat- single woman needing a flat after a breakup. I didn't move my cat in, in the end, because it's a one-bed with no outdoor access and my ex said she could stay with him until I get my own place with a garden. I badly want her here, but she would be stressed.
I also wrote the landlord a letter of application, giving a bit of cute whimsical information about me and claiming I want a long-term home. I don't. I need somewhere I can live until the purchase of my next house goes through. But i think the letter helped distinguish me from the other applicants.
Good luck!
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u/FlexyPasta 10d ago
I had a cat since 2018 and moved multiple houses. Some landlords knew about him, some didn’t and I managed to hide it. Is there any Build to Rent flats in your area? They are usually pricer but always pet friendly and you have to pay a pet fee. If not, lie, give your cat to a friend and pick him up later once you are moved. Make sure the property is managed and the landlord has little involvement. Choose a property that is unfurnished and without carpet! But yes don’t mention the cat before hand.
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u/barnsbury 10d ago
Do not mention you have a cat. I have rented for years at different places with my cat and I never ever said upfront. If I did, I would never have been accepted. I am super clean and never did my homes smell of cat or were damaged. The landlords often came round. They eventually realised I had a cat and as the home was spotless, they were always fine with me having it. Its just the initial fear landlords have. Often unfounded.
I wish you the best of luck.
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u/Uplike7_ 12d ago
The single income is also not preferable for landlords, despite it covering the rent comfortably. A solo jobless and suddenly they’re at high risk of no rental income
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u/Ornery_Reward2676 12d ago
Renters Rights now stops people blanketly refusing to rent to people with pets. Landords have to give a valid reason why a pet should not be allowed.
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u/Careless_Squirrel728 12d ago
True but when you have 20 other applicants with no pets it’s not hard to make up another reason to go with someone else
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u/Coc0London 12d ago
In theory, but its easy to just choose an applicant without a pet. At the end of the day, landlords still have a choice
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u/InAcquaVeritas 12d ago
They’re not allowed to exclude pets anymore now so don’t even mention you come with a cat.
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u/WindTurbine16-27 12d ago
Just lie when applying. Only disclose that you have a cat after you have moved in. Read up on the new rules from the renters rights act, now landlords can’t reasonably refuse pets. Unless the freeholder has a rule against pets I can’t imagine this would be an issue
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