Moving to Ashburn area (Arlington, Alexandria: rental, insurance, townhouse)

[vamdnc]

My husband just received a job offer today in Ashburn, VA. We live about 4 hours away. He took the job but now I'm desperately trying to find a place to move into. We currently own our home and wont be able to sell it right away so we are looking for a place to rent or rent to own. The problem is we have 3 dogs. They are like my children and I can't give them up. The second problem (not to me but it seems like i this area other people look at it as a problem) is they are pit bulls. They are none aggressive, family pets. They have all had temperament tests and don't have any aggression issues. From doing some research it looks like Loudoun country has some pit bull restrictions. Can anyone tell me any dog friendly places to live? I am willing to be within an 1 hour commute to Ashburn. Thank you for ANY help or info.

[snowdenscold]

The good news for you is that the job is in Ashburn. Many people live out in Ashburn for a nice place, but their commute is into DC or Arlington. No reason for you to commute an hour - you can live close to work and get the best of both worlds!

No clue about your pet issues, though.

[z28lt1]

I don't own any Pit bulls, so I may have a lack of awareness on the subject, but as far as I've heard, you can't adopt Pitbulls from the Loudoun County shelters, but you could own them in the county just fine. If you know of something different please post, as I always like to understand the restrictions (even if I'll never own one).

If my understanding is correct, you don't have to worry about the breed issues, but just need to find a place that will allow three dogs, which might be difficult as well, but probably no more-so than anywhere else. Maybe a private townhouse or sfh is the best bet.

[spencgr]

Loudoun is, by far, the most animal-friendly county in the region. There are no limits on number of pets nor on the types of dogs. You are required to get a license, and to get a license, they must have a rabies shot. (The restriction you are referring to is that the Loudoun County shelter will not adopt out any pit pulls.)

(Arlington, City of Falls Church, and Alexandria limit your total # to three dogs, regardless of breed. Fairfax bases their limits on your lot size. Essentially you can own more than 2 dogs if you have a ridiculously large lot,which aren't plentiful in Fairfax.)

That being said, your issues aren't with the county, you will have an extremely hard time finding a rental home that will allow three pit bulls. Almost, if not impossible.

I own a rental home and will not allow dogs in the rental home. Why? Because, as an owner of 4 well-behaved, well-mannered dogs, I KNOW what damage they can do. Aside from the damage, owner's insurance premiums will go up because of the breed-specific pit-bulls.

I do wish you luck......

[CaliTerp07]

Are you willing to lower your standards significantly? I think your only option is going to be finding a hands off landlord who just doesn't care. My agility instructor owns 5 cockers, an ibizan, and a border collie (plus often boards other dogs in her home), and managed to find a place out in Loudoun county to rent. That said, it's hardly a glamorous house. It has a roof and a fenced yard though.

When I was looking to rent with a dog, I typed up a doggie resume with a list of all the obedience classes we've taken, the fact that she's a therapy dog, we compete in agility, etc. I also listed references from former landlords stating that she was nondestructive and house trained. I also offered a sizeable pet deposit (an additional month's rent--so we paid 3 months up front: 1st month, security deposit, pet deposit).

Then, upon move out, we paid to replace the carpeting in the house, because no matter how good your dog is its inevitable that they will throw up somewhere...and it's always the carpet.

Good luck!

(You may want to take a weekend sight seeing trip and write down any "for rent" signs you see...from my agility instructor's anecdotes, a lot of the "hands off" landlords don't post their listings on craigslist like others might)

[spencgr]

Originally Posted by CaliTerp07

When I was looking to rent with a dog, I typed up a doggie resume with a list of all the obedience classes we've taken, the fact that she's a therapy dog, we compete in agility, etc. I also listed references from former landlords stating that she was nondestructive and house trained. I also offered a sizeable pet deposit (an additional month's rent--so we paid 3 months up front: 1st month, security deposit, pet deposit).

Then, upon move out, we paid to replace the carpeting in the house, because no matter how good your dog is its inevitable that they will throw up somewhere...and it's always the carpet.

Well, I'd certainly rent to Caliterp07!!! Definately taking the extra steps to alleviate a landlord's fears.....

[LynchburgLover]

I'd suggest finding a private owner in either Western Loudoun, Clarke County, Frederick County or Fauquier County that has some land around it. The further you get from suburbia the more open-minded the landlords are about animals.

You might also look for a copy of The Chronicle of the Horse. It's published in Middleburg and has farm/farmette listings in the back. You might find a tenant house on a farm.

[Denton56]

Originally Posted by vamdnc

My husband just received a job offer today in Ashburn, VA. We live about 4 hours away. He took the job but now I'm desperately trying to find a place to move into. We currently own our home and wont be able to sell it right away so we are looking for a place to rent or rent to own. The problem is we have 3 dogs. They are like my children and I can't give them up. The second problem (not to me but it seems like i this area other people look at it as a problem) is they are pit bulls. They are none aggressive, family pets. They have all had temperament tests and don't have any aggression issues. From doing some research it looks like Loudoun country has some pit bull restrictions. Can anyone tell me any dog friendly places to live? I am willing to be within an 1 hour commute to Ashburn. Thank you for ANY help or info.

Some counties in Maryland forbid pit bulls. It's largely to protect the animals from the abuse that they suffer. If pit bulls are permitted, too many people in areas like PG county will breed them to be used for fighting. To my knowledge, we have no such restrictions in Loudoun county although the county animal shelter cannot adopt out pit bulls.

My vet is part of an interesting program that might be of interest to you:
Pit-Fix

[Jen_OKC]

I wish you the best of luck! We are renting in Ashburn and I have two yorkies. My landlord required an additional addendum/rider to our rental insurance that covered the dogs. You might offer something like this up front after you speak with your insurance company. But seriously, I had a tough time with two yorkies. I think you'll be hard pressed with 3 pitbulls.

[Samoi137]

Maybe a local pit bull rescue association or owner's group or even the county's animal shelter or humane society would have ideas of where to get more info (including how to contact other owners of the breed so you can see what problems they encountered and how they overcame them-- if they did). If you can't find info locally, try national groups or local groups in other areas. I used to volunteer for the Washington Humane Society.