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A $2000 bond is fair enough. My tenant kept a dog illegally in my unit. When he moved out it cost me over $11,000 to repair the damage caused by the dog. The entire unit had to be repainted. The carpet and lino had to be replaced. The vertical drapes on all the windows had to be replaced and the courtyard had to be topsoiled and re-turfed.
Landlord insurance wouldn’t cover the damage and the bond was <$1,000 because the tenant had been there 11 years. (There were no problems until he moved in his girlfriend and her dog.) The dog had been allowed to urinate on the carpet and dig up the courtyard and the yard was covered in dog poop. There is no way I will ever allow a dog in there again, no matter what the bond is.
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In 11 years there is not only a dog there to ruin the linoleum and carpet… Even the yard could shit not only a dog 🙂 Although it’s more likely that it was a dog. But it’s been 11 years. I’m sorry to hear about what happened. I live in a rental apartment and I don’t get pets either, because it’s much harder to find an apartment with them than without them.
In Victoria as a landlord, I was not allowed to deny a dog in my apartment for lease. I made an effort to assess the tenants for responsible pet ownership at the time of leasing. I did turn down a tenant because she had four cats, that was too much for my apartment. My last tenant though didn’t disclose his dog, but it was no big deal. But that was me.
Back to your point about the pet bond though, I don’t see the need. Your recarpeting and repainting would’ve been necessary anyway – 11 years and carpet would have been stained and threadbare in spots, paint would have scuffed, plaster chipped, effectively fully depreciated – and you def. added more than $11,000 of value to the property if you were to sell it. The damage to your apartment was surely not all because of the dog. I’m sure 11 years of human tenancy had a little to do with it! It’s just the price you pay as a landlord.
In Victoria as a landlord, I was not allowed to deny a dog in my apartment for lease.
Just to clarify, you wouldn’t have been able to deny a pet as a landlord but your building’s by-laws could have (theoretically). I’m only putting this in for other readers. Some people think that the no-pet-ban landlord rule applies to owners corps too, but it doesn’t.
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
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