Why Landlords With ‘No Pets’ Policies Might Be Paying the Price
A study released by Zillow shows pet-friendly apartments are less likely to linger on the market.
Edwin Tan
If you’re a renter with a pet, you’ve likely had to put a little extra effort into finding an apartment. Many buildings have policies that don’t allow for pets, and those that do often charge deposits and additional monthly fees for tenants with four-legged friends. But a recent Zillow survey of the rental market suggests the landlords operating in the “no pets” policy camp may be doing so to their own detriment.
According to Zillow's analysis of over 11 million rental listings on its website in the past year, across the United States, apartments that allow pets were filled an average of eight days faster than those that don’t. For a landlord, less time on the market means less lost rental income, along with less money and time spent showing or marketing the property.
In extremely competitive markets, the speed with which pet-friendly rental units were filled compared to those where pets were prohibited was truly eye-popping. New York City apartments allowing pets were rented a whopping 26 days sooner than the more restrictive competition. Other markets that saw quicker turnarounds on vacant units with pro-pet policies included Tampa, FL (16 days), Columbus, OH (12 days), Phoenix, AZ (11 days) and Austin, TX and Cincinnati, OH (both 10 days).
The data also shows which state might be the most welcoming to pet-owning renters. When combining three of its major metro areas — Dallas, Austin and San Antonio — Texas appears to be the most pet-friendly, with about 80 percent of all rental listings in those cities allowing pets. But Texas also shows us that rental opportunities for pet parents vary city by city, with only 38 percent of Houston rental market listings accepting pets.
According to its 2024 survey of renters, Zillow found that nearly half (44 percent) of renters said they had passed on renting a property due to pet restrictions. The findings also showed a significant increase in the number of renters with pets: nearly 60 percent last year, compared to 46 percent in 2019, perhaps due to a spate of pet adoptions during the pandemic.
So, in theory, any landlords banning pets are likely eliminating about half of prospective tenants, whereas landlords allowing pets have an ever-larger pool of eager applicants who may sign a lease a lot sooner.
