Fewer than one in ten of London rental properties were pet friendly in 2023 according to data from Zoopla.
This is despite the new Model Tenancy Agreement, announced in 2021, that said landlords would no longer be able to issue blanket bans on pets by default.
It asserted that consenting to having pets would be the default position and landlords would have to object to a pet request from a tenant in writing with good reason for the denial.
The then Housing Minister Christopher Pincher said: “We are a nation of animal lovers and over the last year more people than ever before have welcome pets into their lives and homes.
“But it can’t be right that only a tiny fraction of landlords advertise pet friendly properties and in some cases people have had to give up their beloved pets in order to find somewhere to live.”
More than half of UK adults down a pet, but that’s down slightly from 53% in 2023 to 51% in 2024, according to the PDSA’s yearly PAW Report.
London is on par with the England average of 9% of rental properties being “pet allowed” with the South West having the largest number at 15% and the lowest being the West and East Midlands at 5%.
Mel Constantinou, Regional Partner at Knight Frank a real estate agency based in London said: “As the number of pet-friendly rentals are fewer, those that do allow pets will generally attract a higher number of applicants, meaning landlords can take their pick from a list of potential tenants.
“We also find that pet owners tend to be responsible and stable tenants, and generally stay longer in a property, as finding alternatives can be challenging.
“This then means you get a better return from your rental investment as you have less void periods and works between tenancies.”
There are many benefits to tenants having pets especially for those that live alone.
Liv Stevens, 23, a musician and nail tech, got her cat Mush when she was living alone as a student.
She said: “He kept me company and gave me cuddles, made the workload seem a lot lighter.
“As I built his routine it helped me build a routine of my own and so I ended up being more productive. He’s just such a good little guy.
“Some landlords are still so restrictive with having any pets in their properties at all and there is no chance I would move somewhere if they didn’t allow Mush.
“There are still some places which are pet friendly however it does reduce my options significantly – and I don’t think it should.”
A report commissioned by Battersea that came out in March found the average cost for pet related damage was £300 per tenancy, while the average was £775 for non-pet-related damage from tenants that did not own pets.
They also saw that more than three-quarters of landlords reported they did not experience any pet related damage to their rental properties.
The report also found that renters with pets tended to stay in properties for longer than those that did not own pets.
It does seem that the number of landlords who allow pets is increasing as according to gov.uk as in 2021 before the new Model Tenancy Agreement just 7% of private landlords advertised their properties as pet friendly.
