[lkmax]

Well...I think it's finally happening.

I have dreamed of moving to Las Vegas since the first time I visited. My husband has been on board, but we've been unsure of whether or not we should do it. It is quite a big move for both of us...neither of us have lived anywhere close to that far from "home" (North Carolina).

Well...to make a long story short, we're fed up with our fixer-upper property. What initially appeared to be a home that only needed cosmetic upgrades has slowly become a nightmare. This place needs thousands of dollars worth of work, and because of the location among other things, it's not going to be worth much even when all of the work is done. I hate to say it, but when it comes to home repairs, we just aren't DIY people. We're stressed and tired from dealing with this property and all of the problems that go along with it. I'm ready to move into a decent place where I can "nest" and decorate and everything without worrying about a bazillion issues that all need to be fixed..

If we're going to get out of this property, though, we don't really want to look to buy or rent around here, where we're miserable. We figure that now is as good of a time as any to move to Las Vegas. And we don't want to look into buying in Vegas...we feel more comfortable renting for a while since it's such a huge move, and to be honest, after dealing with our property, I wouldn't mind leaving maintenance issues up to a landlord for a little while.

So, the question is...how hard is it going to be to find a rental with five pets? We have two dogs (one is 15lbs and 8 years old, and one is 35lbs and almost 6 years old) and three cats (all are fixed, one is declawed). Our animals are not destructive at all and are all quite well-behaved and "chill." They do shed some, I'll admit, but I clean up after them diligently, and they certainly don't cause any type of "permanent" damage...no potty accidents, no chewing or scratching things...

I know many landlords shy away from pets completely, and those who do accept them often only accept two. I understand it because I know pets can be destructive, but ours are not...I just don't know how to convince a landlord of that.

I am self-employed and work from home, so I'll be able to take my work with me. I know some landlords shy away from the self-employed, but I've been doing the same type of work for about five years now, and I do have plenty of proof of my income, which is sufficient for our needs. We're not super-picky...I want a decent single-family rental with a fenced-in backyard. Area doesn't really matter, as long as it's safe. A small home is fine, since it's just the two of us.

So...does anyone have any advice? Is it going to be impossible to find a place? Our pets are our "babies," so giving them up is not an option. I do think this is the only thing that is holding us back right now...otherwise, we'd move into one of the nice apartments in Vegas in an instant..

[reenzz]

ALL tenants claim that their pets are not like other pets and that they never cause damages. You are going to have a extreamly hard time finding any landlord to accept 5 pets. Look for house rentals and be prepared to offer a large pet deposit.

[SoHoVe]

All I will say is there are tons of out of state landlords utilizing property managers who don't check up on things much if at all.

Personally, I would rather rent to someone with a few cats and small dogs than to low income with a bunch of kids. I had tenants with pets in the past and the pets weren't the ones performing shoddy unauthorised "improvements".

With that said, even as a big fan of pets if I was able to choose between tenants with all else being equal, I would rather not rent to people with animals because realistically you just never know.

[crabtrees]

So many properties in Las Vegas are owned by investors who need to rent them out. I don't think you'll have a difficult time finding a rental, but of course you'll have to put down a big deposit. I have multiple dogs and cats as well, and have had experience renting. The cats are not a problem, it's the dogs who generally create the concerns because the run around and scratch up the wood floors. If you rent a home with a yard you should be able to run them around a bit each day in the yard and cut down on the inside playtime.

[lkmax]

Thanks for the input, guys. I already know that it's not going to be easy to find a rental with so many pets. I'm hoping we can find something. Our dogs aren't too big and are a little older, so they're fairly settled and not too wild.

And I definitely understand not being a landlord's first choice. As much as I love my pets, I'm not sure that a person with five pets would be my first choice if I were a landlord, either.

I guess we'll just have to be prepared to shell out plenty of money in deposits. That's really not something I'm worried about because we can swing it, I just hope we can actually find something to put a deposit ON lol...

[aamor1987]

I'm in the same boat as you kind of. Except I have 3 dogs (no cats). It does seem like most landlords have a 2 pet limit if they accept pets at all.

[ddrhazy]

You're going to have a hard time finding someone to rent to you. Also, Clark county limits the amount of pets you can have to 3, more and you need a fancier's license.

[PinkString]

Pahrump is a little more lenient on pets. I don't think they have a minimum of how many you can have. If you don't mind the commute, that might be your better bet.

[lkmax]

Originally Posted by ddrhazy

You're going to have a hard time finding someone to rent to you. Also, Clark county limits the amount of pets you can have to 3, more and you need a fancier's license.

I was under the impression that you can have up to three dogs and three cats..?

FAQ

[lkmax]

Originally Posted by PinkString

Pahrump is a little more lenient on pets. I don't think they have a minimum of how many you can have. If you don't mind the commute, that might be your better bet.

Blegh. I really don't want to live in Pahrump. Might end up having to, though.