Los Angeles

[buyahouse]

Hi, we have a rental townhome, a couple with a dog applied for rent.  Is it common or even legal in California to charge a non-refundable pet fee (say like $250) from tenants? I don't want to scare them away, but if this is standard practice, then I would go for it.

My friends in North carolina said it is standard to charge a non-refundable pet fee to tenants who have pets. but what about in California?

Thanks

[Adam-la]

There is no standard.  You can charge a $2500 non-refundable deposit if you want but my advice as a property manager would be to ask for a larger deposit that IS refundable if the place is kept clean and put back in the right condition after they move. 

[DrivingSideways]

What about a child fee?  My sister's kids are way more destructive to a house than my 90 lb Lab has ever been.  I guess it is common practice, but charging a pet deposit usually tells me the potential landlord is going to find a way to keep that money anyway, so I would look for another property.  Both of my last two rentals, I have not had to pay it.  Deposit requirements in general have gone completely whacko in the past ten years.

[Adam-la]

If you read the original post, this is an owner asking if they can charge a fee. 

$250 is a pretty small cleaning deposit for a pet.  I just vacated a house and their dogs chewed up both front and back doors.  That alone was more than $250. 

[buyahouse]

I think asking a pet deposit is reasonable to cover any potential damage. But my question is whether this can be non-refundable fee instead of a refundable deposit? And what would most people in California do with regard to pet fee/deposit?

[Adam-la]

EDIT (2/21/2012)

You cannot charge a non-refundable pet deposit (or other deposit).  The information in the book below and from what others have posted will answer the question. 

You can make it a non-refundable deposit if you want. 

The main rules for deposits in California are that they cannot be more then 2x the monthly rent (3x if furnished) and you must return the deposit, or an itemized expense list, within 21 days of the posession being returned to the owner. 

There is no 'standard' for pet deposits. 

You should absolutely look into buying this book.  it is the BEST guide to being a landlord in California.

http://www.nolo.com/products/the-california-landlords-law-book-LBRT.html

[DrivingSideways]

Yea I read the post perfectly well.  I was responding from a tenant's perspective.  You responded from a landlord's perspective.  Just because I don't parrot what you say doesn't mean I lack reading comprehension skills.

[AprilMay]

From a tenant's perspective, I'd much rather have any pet deposit be refundable. I have cats, and they aren't destructive to the property, because I provide them with an appropriate place to claw, and deter unwanted behavior. I don't see why a landlord should keep the deposit if there's no damage. That would make me think twice about renting that place. For me, pet rent is a total dealbreaker. I'll walk away, be offended, and tell others about it. Pet rent is just nuts and gives a horrible impression of a potential landlord.

[Artiste]

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DrivingSideways wrote:

What about a child fee?  My sister's kids are way more destructive to a house than my 90 lb Lab has ever been.  I guess it is common practice, but charging a pet deposit usually tells me the potential landlord is going to find a way to keep that money anyway, so I would look for another property.  Both of my last two rentals, I have not had to pay it.  Deposit requirements in general have gone completely whacko in the past ten years.

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It is illegal to charge a "child fee" in Los Angeles. You can charge a security deposit.

A pet deposit is quite the norm here. $500 per dog and $300 per cat...refunded if there is no pet related damage when the tenant moves out.

Your post does not make a lot of sense...if your sister's kids cause a lot of destruction to their rental, the landlord can take the repair cost out of the security deposit.

[DowntownVentura]

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Adam-la wrote:

You can make it a non-refundable deposit if you want. 

The main rules for deposits in California are that they cannot be more then 2x the monthly rent (3x if furnished) and you must return the deposit, or an itemized expense list, within 21 days of the posession being returned to the owner. 

There is no 'standard' for pet deposits. 

You should absolutely look into buying this book.  it is the BEST guide to being a landlord in California.

http://www.nolo.com/products/the-california-landlords-law-book-LBRT.html

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You CANNOT have a non-refundable deposit, whether for pets or otherwise. ( Civil Code Section 1950.5(m).) The book you recommend, which I recommend highly as well, describes this on page 86.

At the beginning of a tenancy, there are basically three charges

1. Application fee (credit check fee, etc)
2. First month’s rent
3. Security deposit

The application fee, limited to about $42, is used for actual costs incurred by the landlord to do the credit/background checks. Any other fees, charges, etc. called “new tenant fee”, “tenant setup fee”, etc. are just considered part of the security deposit. A landlord can include a small charge (perhaps $10) for his time in processing the application. However, I know of no landlord that actually does this.

The first month’s rent, obviously, goes to actually renting the unit. If this first month’s rent is higher than the other months’ rent, the additional is considered part of the security deposit.

The security deposit cannot exceed two times the rent if unfurnished or three times the rent if furnished. This includes all additional deposits, e.g. pet deposit. There is no such thing, in California, as a non-refundable security deposit. It is all subject to actual expenses incurred by the landlord for damage or non-payment of rent.