Dogs - outside of the city (San Jose, Palo Alto: apartment, rentals, house)

[Kooze]

I know it's next to impossible to find a place to rent in the city if you're a dog owner. But, is it hard to find a place in silicon valley that will allow dogs?

[mstnghu2]

I have a 60lb Australian Cattle Dog and did come across my fair share of landlords who wouldn't allow pets while I was searching for a rental home.
If you're using Craigslist, don't limit yourself by indicating "allows cats/dogs" when performing a search. Some listings don't specify either way but are open to pets.
The listing to the house I live in now didn't say anything about allowing pets, but the landlord was open to the possibility. I had to pay an additional $500 deposit for my dog and that's it.
Finding pet-friendly rentals is easier outside of the city for sure, but can still be a bit tiresome.
During my search, I found it to be annoying how many listings said "no pets". I'd look at pictures of some of these places and think to myself "you can't be serious, your house is completely dated and in crappy condition and you're worried about my dog?" If you walked into my house and didn't see my dog, you wouldn't know one lived there. Our house is spotless and always smells good, our rent is always on time and the house is actually in better condition now than when we moved in. When landlords are adament about their "no pet" policy they're eliminating an entire pool of potentially good tenants.

[Kooze]

Does size matter at all? We have a small to medium dog, maybe a little bigger than the size of a large cat.

[mayorhaggar]

Anywhere competitive will be tough because landlords will know they can get away with more ridiculous demands. Somewhere like Palo Alto will probably be tough, somewhere in outer San Jose maybe not so much. And yes, a smaller dog will be easier to find a place with than if you had a giant dog.

[gizmo980]

What's your budget, location preferences, and how big of a place do you need? I have a 40lb mixed-breed (Cattle Dog mix?), and it wasn't easy finding a dog-friendly place within my budget... did find something eventually, but I pay a hefty price! I don't want to share the exact location here, but it's a 710sf apartment in the South Bay for $1365 + $45/mo for "pet rent." I didn't mention my three cats, as they wanted to charge that fee PER PET - which would have been a total of $180/mo for my animals.

So yeah, it's pretty tough renting w/ a dog (especially one that's bigger than a Chihuahua) around here. If you need a specific recommendation, I can share the name & location of my complex via PM... it is a bit pricey, but not above-market for something in this neighborhood, especially considering the quality & amenities.

[OzPod]

We're looking in East Bay now (relocating from WA). We have 2 dogs - 1 big one (and even a "questionable breed" to some) and 1 little one.
Overall I have to say we've had good luck and good responses from landlords. We're very open about our dogs, happy to provide any/all info they want, etc.
Our issue hasn't been finding a place, but rather deciding exactly where we want to be (tough to know for sure) .
Good luck. Keep looking. You'll find a place!