People choose to rent instead of buying for a variety of reasons, many of which are financial. Even as rent prices continue to outpace income growth, some landlords will charge up-front pet deposits as high as $600 with an additional $700 in pet fees or rent over the term of a lease. In this scenario, a tenant could pay more in pet deposits, fees, and rent in their first year of renting than they paid for their overall rental deposit. This is out of control, and we must step in for the sake of renters across Pennsylvania.

It is one thing to charge tenants for property damage their pets could potentially cause. It is another thing entirely to charge a captive audience exorbitant fees for the sake of profit. To restore equity to rental property pet policies, I will soon introduce legislation to prohibit landlords from charging tenants an upfront or ongoing pet fee or rent. Landlords would be permitted to charge a monthly pet deposit that is no more than 1% of the monthly rent, not to exceed $500 over the term of the lease. This will ensure that landlords still have funds in place should a tenant’s pet cause property damage, while providing financial relief to renters.

Affordable housing should not be out of reach simply because a renter has pets. Please join me in support of a more equitable solution to pet rents and fees by signing on to this proposal.