As many landlords and tenants alike know, 2024 brought some interesting new changes to the Residential Tenancy’s Act. We have written about this new legislation before in detail, but out of all the changes the one that seems to garner the most attention and consternation from owners is the “say yes to pets” policy. So many owners, new and existing are asking “how can we say no to pets” and the short answer is you can’t. DEMIRS has advised landlords can refuse a pet if keeping the pet would break a law or strata by-law, but as we are seeing, these two scenarios affect very few cases.

So, what is left for landlords out there to do? The only option is to apply to the Commissioner and seek approval from them, under certain grounds, to not have pets at their property. Many landlords have gone down this path, and sadly, not many have been successful. Now don’t get me wrong, I am an animal lover, I believe tenants should have the option of having pets, but I also feel this legislation by DEMIRS should not have been so black and white. DEMIRS advocates it is a legal right for tenants to have pets but what about when it doesn’t make sense?

I heard a recent story about a tenant who wanted to have a larger dog join the family, the property in question was a strata property, with a very tiny courtyard that offered no shade, wet weather protection or sufficient area for a large dog to live. Understandably the owner did not feel this was a good environment to have a dog in and took the matter to the Commissioner. For further support they sought advice from a dog shelter, showed them the courtyard and asked if they would let one of their dogs be adopted to live in that space, the shelter said no because it was not good for the dog’s wellbeing. This case was passed by the Commissioner and the tenant got their dog. This is just one of many stories circulating where pets have been approved without logic being applied.

What further exacerbates the issue is the ridiculously low pet bond. $260.00, a one off bond, no matter how many pets you have.  It’s our understanding that midyear this may be increased to $350.00 but it is hardly enough to even scratch the surface on the kind of damage an animal can do. What may have placated the anxiety some landlords have over pets, is that if DEMIRS made the pet bond higher or made it per pet. It may also make tenants think again about getting that second or third animal. I also suggest looking into landlord insurance so if you are in a situation where you do have to accept pets in your rental property, you can explore what you can claim if any damage does occur.

Change is good and we have to move with the times but it’s a shame a more moderate and balanced pet reform was not considered.

Written by Stacey Kouroulis – Director of Property Management 0417 926 091