Convincing Your Landlord to Allow a Cat: A Complete How-to Guide

Can’t stand the thought of moving into a new home without your furry feline companion in tow?

While many landlords aren’t fond of the thought of a cat living in their property, you might be able to convince them otherwise. Just because there’s a ‘no animal companion’ clause in the lease doesn’t mean you can’t negotiate a little leniency for a well-behaved kitty.

With a carefully crafted appeal backed up by convincing evidence and a few financial concessions, your anti-cat landlord could come to welcome kitty with open arms.

You’ll need to be strategic about how you frame your case, however. And that’s why we’ve put together this handy how-to guide.

Read the Rental Agreement Carefully

Before you start building a case for your cat, you need to understand what’s in the rental agreement. Pop on your reading glasses and start pouring through the fine print.

If the document clearly states ‘no pets allowed,’ that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to rule the place out. Landlords often include blanket pet bans to avoid unruly dogs, which tend to make more of a nuisance than the docile household cat. You could successfully convince your landlord to remove the clause by presenting evidence that your cat is well-trained and properly looked after.

On the flipside, ‘pet-friendly’ doesn’t necessarily mean all pets are allowed. Contact the landlord to clarify whether the term applies to your particular breed of cat. If it doesn’t, you still might be able to persuade the landlord through a thoughtful appeal.

Draft a Letter or Make Your Appeal in Person

Before you prepare a case on behalf of your kitty, think about whether your landlord would prefer to hear you out in writing or in person.

If you’ve already built a rapport with your landlord and find them approachable and easy to converse with, a face-to-face discussion is your best bet. A meeting adds a personalized element to the appeal and allows you to emphasize the non-destructive nature of your cat.

If your landlord prefers written communication—or you struggle to get hold of them—then opt to send a letter or email instead. You won’t earn any favors insisting on a meeting with a landlord who doesn’t have the time or inclination to discuss such matters in person.

Consider the Tone of Your Appeal

Focus your argument on how well-behaved, well-looked after, and non-destructive your cat will be. Your landlord isn’t interested in your emotional bond with the animal but rather the potential damage it could cause to the property.

Use polite language and avoid making any threats. If your landlord agrees to make an exception, they’ll be doing you a favor, so you need to frame the appeal accordingly. Addressing them in the appropriate title and throwing in a ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ or two goes a long way.

Build Rapport and Present Yourself as a Good Tenant

A landlord is far more likely to make an exception if they like you on a personal level and feel you’re a good tenant.

From the get-go, communicate with your landlord in a prompt, friendly, and respectful tone—that’s solid advice regardless of whether you want to bring a cat into the home.

If you’ve been living in the property for a while and you’re considering getting a new cat, your landlord will already know whether you’re a reliable tenant. Should you have missed a few payment deadlines in the past, hold off on getting a new cat for a few months and make a point of covering bills in advance.

New tenants will need to provide evidence of their ability to care for a property and pay the bills on time. Send the landlord some glowing references from previous tenancies and show off your stellar credit rating.

Address the Key Pain Points

Many landlords prefer not to accept cats because some naughty felines have a nasty habit of defecating on the carpet and scratching the furniture. It’s a valid concern, and it’s up to you to prove your furry friend isn’t one to run amok.

Rather than avoiding the elephant in the room, use a pro-active approach by explaining the steps you could take to prevent property damage.

• Let the landlord know if you’ve trimmed your cat’s claws or if you’ve spayed or neutered the animal to make it more docile.
• Tell them if you’ve toilet trained your cat or if you’ve bought them a scratching post to keep them amused when you’re not home.
• Finally, if you’ve already lived in a rental property with your kitty, emphasize how you haven’t had any issues in the past.

The landlord won’t necessarily take your word for it, so back-up any of these claims with evidence.

Submit Veterinary Records

If you can convince the landlord you’re a responsible pet owner, they’re far more likely to believe your cat will behave itself.

• Submit your cat’s veterinary history with your appeal, including evidence that’s up to date on all its vaccinations.
• If you’ve had your cat neutered or spayed, be sure to include the documentation in your appeal, as de-sexed animals are widely known to be less destructive.
• Inform your landlord on your flea control efforts to show you’re genuinely interested in protecting your animal and the property.

Make Some Financial Concessions

If you’ve done all the above and your landlord still isn’t convinced, you could try offering a few financial concessions to sweeten the deal.

Should your landlord agree to any of the following, get the new agreement in writing, either as an entirely new lease or an addendum.

Offer to Sign a Longer Lease

Landlords hate it when tenants come and go. Not only do they lose income while the property remains vacant, but they have to go through the hassle of finding someone suitable to occupy it.

An easy initial bargaining chip is to offer to sign an extended lease. If you’re happy with the property—aside from the fact you can’t have a cat—and expect to live there for several years, there’s no harm in extending the lease upfront in exchange for leniency with the pet policy.

It’s a win-win scenario: your landlord won’t have to find a new tenant soon, and you won’t have to pay extra to bring your furry feline on board.

Offer to Pay a Pet Deposit

As cats often cause additional wear and tear on a property, the landlord will typically want to protect their investment.

If your landlord is reluctant to budge on their policy, consider offering an additional pet deposit. A typical figure ranges from two to four week’s rent on top of the standard rental deposit.

Emphasize how you don’t expect your animal to cause any damage; you’re merely offering extra money to reassure the landlord their property is fully protected. Some landlords prefer a non-refundable deposit on the presumption a pet will always cause some degree of damage.

Pay Extra Pet Rent

The beautiful thing about a pet deposit is that if your kitty behaves well, you’ll get all your money back at the end of the lease.

However, not all landlords will agree to allow a cat based on the extra deposit alone. Additional monthly rental income is an incentive few landlords will refuse, so offer to pay pet rent if you’re still struggling to reach an agreement.

The amount of additional rent is up for negotiation, and it’s wise to let the landlord come up with an initial sum (you can always counter-offer if you think it’s too high). Although the figure will vary, a standard agreement is around $50 per month or 10% of the monthly rent.

Register an Emotional Support Animal (ESA)

If all else fails, consider getting your cat certified as an emotional support animal.

Emotional support animals provide comfort to people with a psychological disability. U.S. law obligates landlords to accept them in a rental agreement. Certification requires getting an approved mental health professional to certify the animal is essential for your psychological well-being.

The process is relatively straightforward—there’s an entire industry revolving around it—but this path does come with one significant caveat; some landlords see emotional support animals as a legal loophole to bypass rental regulations (many tenants abuse the system).

While the landlord may begrudgingly accept your cat, they may not take kindly to you as a tenant. Don’t be surprised if they decide to break your lease for an “unrelated” reason further down the track. However, if they do something like this and you feel you are being discriminated against or they’re acting against ESA laws, consider filing a complaint against your landlord.

Getting a Landlord to Allow a Cat: Final Thoughts

Although it may take some preparation and negotiation, it’s possible to convince your landlord to welcome your kitty into the property.

For the best chance of success, take our advice on board and remain polite and respectful throughout the process. With a little perseverance, you could soon be living in harmony with your kitty.