Cats in flats

thatoldchestnut

Hello

At the moment my partner and I are saving for a leasehold flat and we'd like a cat at some point. I know that some leases prohibit pets but that some allow them if they don't disturb other residents. Is one more common than the other? Also, is it possible to look at the lease of a particular property before you've agreed to view it, and are property management companies usually amenable to these requests? We don't want to waste anyone's (or our own) time by going to look at somewhere we're ultimately not going to be interested in.

AnotherJoe

The sellers should have a copy of the lease for their flat, ask them if cats are allowed and if they say yes ask for a copy.
Maybe it's just me but isn't it cruel to cage a cat up in a few rooms for its whole life ?

Kim_kim

AnotherJoe wrote: »

The sellers should have a copy of the lease for their flat, ask them if cats are allowed and if they say yes ask for a copy.
Maybe it's just me but isn't it cruel to cage a cat up in a few rooms for its whole life ?

Some cats have to live indoors, if they are deaf or have cat HIV.
Some cats prefer to, I had a cat that hated going out.

CarrieVS

AnotherJoe wrote: »

Maybe it's just me but isn't it cruel to cage a cat up in a few rooms for its whole life ?

I'm a huge fan of letting cats outside where possible - my outside cat Poppy is my Wild Thing and it would break my heart to shut her up, and in my house hunt I ruled out any properties I wouldn't be comfortable letting a cat out from.

But the fact is it's not all one-sided, there are negatives to letting cats out, and what's best for any given cat depends on the cat and on the circumstances. Provided it has plenty of stimulation, things to do all day and people who interact with it, and provided it's not a former outside cat that knows what it's missing, I think most cats can cope ok with it.

Also some flats (maisonettes especially) do have outside space and direct access to it - you don't know what OP is looking at. And many owners who don't let their cat roam still take them out on a lead for regular exercise which is not quite the same thing but they do get to experience the outside.

There are also plenty of adult indoor cats needing new homes, who would in many cases be either afraid or unsafe if they were let outside, special needs cats who wouldn't be safe outside, and FIV positive cats that can't be let loose for other cats' safety: OP may be planning to adopt a cat that needs an indoor life.

Best not to judge without knowing OP's full circumstances.

eddddy

thatoldchestnut wrote: »

Also, is it possible to look at the lease of a particular property before you've agreed to view it, and are property management companies usually amenable to these requests?

Management companies will almost certainly not discuss anything with you.

As AnotherJoe says, ask the seller (leaseholder) via the EA in the first instance.

But it's very possible that the seller won't know, and they might guess the answer. (If you read these forums, you'll see that some sellers don't even know how long their lease is, let alone whether the lease allows pets.)

thatoldchestnut

AnotherJoe wrote: »

Maybe it's just me but isn't it cruel to cage a cat up in a few rooms for its whole life ?

I should clarify that we will be either getting a ground floor flat that allows us to let the cat out if we need to, or otherwise we'll be getting a cat that has to stay indoors.

thatoldchestnut

eddddy wrote: »

Management companies will almost certainly not discuss anything with you.

But it's very possible that the seller won't know, and they might guess the answer. (If you read these forums, you'll see that some sellers don't even know how long their lease is, let alone whether the lease allows pets.)

Yes, this is what i’m afraid of. I may need to make it clear when I ask that the pet clause is a bit of a dealbreaker.

CarrieVS

thatoldchestnut wrote: »

I may need to make it clear when I ask that the pet clause is a bit of a dealbreaker.

Good luck. In my experience many EAs are pretty reluctant to answer questions like that until they've gotten you out to see the place. Beats me why, it's a pure waste of everyone's time. But I may just have had bad luck.

KatrinaWaves

With regards to ‘cats needing to go outside’

Name one other domesticated animal that requires free access to outside. Dogs? Rabbits? Parrots? I don’t understand why people are all ‘omg cats must go outside’ when they don’t apply that to any other animal that was once a wild creature.

Cats do just fine indoors. Yes they might fuss if they have previously had outdoor access and then no longer do, like anyone would miss something they once enjoyed, but a cat that is brought up indoors will not miss the outside. Cats will paw at ANY closed door regardless of where it leads to, including under stairs cupboards and wardrobes...

TadleyBaggie

Some breeds of cat(e.g. Ragdoll) shouldn't be allowed out. We have 2 of them and they are quite happy being indoors.

ChicaBonita

We have two british short hairs in our 2 bed flat. Early on in the buying process we asked for permission from the management company for cats and we got it (the lease said yes to pets as long as you have permission)- we would have pulled out if it was a no tbh, as having pets was very important for us.