No pets without prior consent? Please Help?!

Scotbot

AdrianC said:

TanJ23 said:

youth_leader said:

I was a bit shocked the other day when a neighbour commented that my dog had barked for so long she had felt concerned, and was going to come round to see if I was alright.  

That’s a concern also that someone would make things up to try and get the animal removed! If no nuisance is being caused it shouldn’t concern others 

By definition, though, if they are "concerned", then it's causing a nuisance. Nuisance is in the eye of the beholder.

Which  allows people to be vindictive  if they so choose,  that is what would bother me most. I have seen some awful behaviour from people in apartment blocks and it only takes one.

youth_leader

I have a cat and a dog, and was hoping to buy in Devon, but could only afford a flat.  I was astounded to see a post on here where the other flat residents had complained that the cat owner put too much cat litter in the bin - I assume it was a communal bin.  So offputting that people in that block watched what people put in the bin. .

Skippy13

youth_leader said:

I have a cat and a dog, and was hoping to buy in Devon, but could only afford a flat.  I was astounded to see a post on here where the other flat residents had complained that the cat owner put too much cat litter in the bin - I assume it was a communal bin.  So offputting that people in that block watched what people put in the bin. .

That would really put me off buying as I'd be wondering what else the nosey gits were watching!

Slithery

youth_leader said:

I was astounded to see a post on here where the other flat residents had complained that the cat owner put too much cat litter in the bin - I assume it was a communal bin.  So offputting that people in that block watched what people put in the bin. .

What makes you think that the neighbors were watching? If it was a communal bin and it was full of cat litter then surely the obvious culprit is the one person that owns a cat....

couriervanman

TanJ23 said:

He’s not left alone a family member takes him whilst we work luckily so that’s not a problem we have thankfully, he’s quiet and small 

AdrianC said:

All fairly standard for flats. For obvious reasons...

Nobody ever thinks it's THEIR dog that causes noise and smells...

Every dog owner says that......when in fact quite often their dogs are a bl00dy nuisance

Crumble2018

Deleted_User said:

FaceHead said:

Does the OP also have to ask permission to have a child in the flat, which might cry a cause a nuisance to others?

It seems ridiculous to impose conditions on what people can do in their own homes on the off chance it might cause a nuisance to others. Living in a flat comes with some expectation of noise from neighbors.

If a nuisance is being caused then action should be taken, rather than the leaseholder pre-judging what could be a nuisance, e.g. requiring permission for a either a dog or a goldfish. 

Having to pay for permission to do something reasonable in one's home is yet more absurd. Even if you did make the concession of accepting that you have to ask for permission to do the reasonable, I'd argue that the if the freeholder didn't grant permission without payment, that would constitute unreasonable withholding of permission. 

As a general rule, adults wouldn't be allergic to or scared of children 

I'd rather my neighbours had dogs than children any day of the week!

Crumble2018

The lease on our flat says nothing about pets at all, but after we moved in we had a letter from the Freeholder (a housing association) telling us we had to apply to have a pet, and that dogs are not allowed at all. However, there are at least 3 other flats in the block that have dogs, and a few with cats. 
I'd errr on the side of caution and just ask permission for your dog - it's unlikely to be refused if they don't state there's a blanket ban.

steampowered

Could you ask your vendors to check with the management company that this won't be a problem?

The management company should be able to give you consent now, or at least tell you whether it is going to be a problem or not. There might be a fee for the consent but at least you'll know what is required.

I would have thought a small dog is unlikely to be a problem, but you can have it checked to put your mind at rest.

annetheman

TanJ23 said:

Hello, we are going through the process of buying a flat, this is my first mortgage we are at the stage of waiting for the searches to come back from the solicitor in the meantime we have received the lease (my small, not particularly offensive dachshund hadn’t crossed my mind through this entire process until now!) the lease states ‘not to keep pets in the unit except with prior consent written of the lessor (this will not be unreasonably withheld)’ my question is does this mean they only allow dogs on medical grounds and will most likely refuse our request? It’s a ground floor flat surrounded by green space, I have read that people just get told no outright so now I’m super worried as we have come this far!! If they say no it’s game over or does anyone think we could just take him and risk it? :-/

During my FTB process (which I am still in, having reserved 4th Mar 2020), I asked the managing association to send a pet permission form. I had to call and email quite a few different people to get to the person who deals with it, though.

Once I received the form, I signed it, sent my cat's vet records (microchipped + number, neutured, up-to-date vaccination and treatments, vet confirmation he is indoor-only) and a picture of my adorable fluffikins. 

They gave me their written permission and I still haven't completed but at least I know fluffikins is moving with me. 

The conditions are reasonable and what you would expect - all the above in the vet record, dispose of waste in poop bags (lavender-scented for me), do not install a cat flap and do not allow them to become a nuisance to others.

I expect your conditions would be the same but it's harder to ensure the above with a dog, IMO. I read that dachshunds are really mean lol.

Advice: ask now, get the pet permission form, fulfill the conditions and all should be fine.

TanJ23

Just thought I’d update, we emailed the secretary of the management and has basically said that they had agreed for dogs previously and she’d forward our request but because of past issues with dogs and owners being irresponsible they’d likely say no!

I do understand the concerns but the lease does state it would not be unreasonably withheld so I’m struggling to understand why the actions of others is a reasonable reason to say no to all potential buyers, she also said that we should have been informed of this before we got to this stage! 

Sounds like the lease needs updating?

Back to the drawing board I guess!