Need info re pets and renting in Minneapolis/St Paul (Maple Grove: apartments, rentals)

[back2M]

Hi Everyone! I am moving from Australia to Minnesota next summer and am researching if I should take my 2 cats with me. It costs alot to fly them over which I would like to do as they are "family" but if I can't find rentals over there that take cats then its better to find a good family here to have them.

I can't find much info and am hoping who ever reads this will be able to assist with these questions;

1) Rental ads don't seem to indicate if pets are ok. Is Minnesota rentals pretty pet friendly or not? Better luck in the city or suburbs, any difference even?

2) Here I did have written in the lease that I will have carpets cleaned when I move out which is standard here. I've been reading on this forum (not sure which States) that non refundable or refundable pet deposits are required. Is this the case for MN and if so how much? Charged per cat? Refundable or not?

3) Is it going to take me months to find a pet friendly rental? Should I only look for houses then or are apartments, townhouses, condos also pet friendly?

4) Would rental property management companies take any notice if I get a letter of good rental history with pets from my current property company?

5) Am I missing anything else I should know about, please advise - basically is it worth it or not?

Thanks in advance for your advice!

[lpcxa0]

1) Most rental places I have found are generally more friendly towards cats then dogs, however the best way to find a place is to create a list of a few places, and ask them during an informal telephone call.
2) Yes, most places require a refundable pet refund. I have seen (but not often) a nonrefundable pet refund. I would avoid those like the plague, they are generally in bad spots. Cost varies by place but I would figure $50-$150 per pet.
3) It shouldn't take months, again, the easiest way is to call a few places and ask if they are cat friendly. For types, that all depends on your income limit. However, I would highly recommend looking at an apartment building due to moving from outside the USA. For the pets, just call a few places that you're interested in and ask. I'm allowed to have dogs at my current place, but the rental ad said "No Pets" - I asked, and they agreed to a dog for a refundable pet deposit.
4) Doesn't really matter unless you're dealing with a private landlord which moving from a different country, I can't recommend. Maybe once you're established a bit more, but right now, I think you're going to be better off going with an actual apartment building that is professionally managed.
5)Airplane rides are extremely stressful on pets, keep that in mind. If you bring them, talk to a vet about knocking them out for the plane ride, it's more humane then leaving them awake. The truth is, are the cats part of your family or are you ok with leaving them? Who takes them, just some random person you found on Craigslist or a family friend? These are important questions to ask.

[back2M]

Also does anyone know where I can locate information re current vacancies rates? The city I live in has only .02 % vacancy rate so you can expect alot of applications. When looking for the place I live in now there was over 75 people that came for the "open house inspection" and the rental management company told me that they had 42 applications so I feel pretty lucky getting this place. (also I have excellent rental history and good job) I guess that's what makes me nervous about finding a pet friendly rental. Maybe there is plenty of rentals available in decent areas, I don't know where to find stats re same, any help much appreciated.

[back2M]

Originally Posted by LadyHooiser

The Twin Cities is very cat-friendly for rentals that allow pets. You just have to look for them in the suburbs because there are very few in the city proper based on my own experience of moving from Indianapolis to this area.

Thanks, good to know that places are cat friendly. Sorry to read your saying though that you "loathe Minnesota", hopefully that's just winter cabin fever talking!

[back2M]

Originally Posted by lpcxa0

1) Most rental places I have found are generally more friendly towards cats then dogs, however the best way to find a place is to create a list of a few places, and ask them during an informal telephone call.
5)Airplane rides are extremely stressful on pets, keep that in mind. If you bring them, talk to a vet about knocking them out for the plane ride, it's more humane then leaving them awake. The truth is, are the cats part of your family or are you ok with leaving them? Who takes them, just some random person you found on Craigslist or a family friend? These are important questions to ask.

Thanks "Ipcxa0" for the information. I have had my 2 "indoor lap" cats for 5 years now and they are definately part of my family. That is why I do want to bring them with me. I have already spoken to the Vet about transportation as it is can be tiring and stressful on humans for a 25 hour trip so you can just imagine what happens to animals. If I did decide to leave them behind I already have a good friend that will have them as her cat died of old age a couple of years ago and my cats really do like her too but of course I want to bring them over. I will be staying at my brothers until I get a job but he is not a cat lover so I will be looking for a rental fairly quickly. Got plenty of savings but from researching I think I will have the job first before applying for rentals.

[lpcxa0]

Originally Posted by back2M

Also does anyone know where I can locate information re current vacancies rates?

I don't have any ideas on the current vacancy rates, but it's really not that hard to find as a place in the cities as long as you're flexible about where you're living. If you're trying for a specific complex, you may need to wait a bit dependent on the housing unit. But if you're just trying to live in a general city(Minneapolis, Maple Grove, Shakopee, etc.), you should have no trouble finding a place. Also, most places allow move in within a month - sometimes immediately.

If you can live with family first to check out a few places, it would be better then blindly selecting a complex but this forum is very friendly with helping you with recommendations on areas to help you narrow down your search.

[Beenhere4ever]

Doesn't the Internet allow you to filter out "pets allowed" places? I would hope so. When we bought our house back in the early 90's, information methods were primitive, and my wife's pets forced us to become our own landlords.

[uptown_urbanist]

It's going to be fairly easy to find a place that takes cats. You may have to pay a special pet deposit, but not necessarily. I don't think there's any difference between city or suburb, house or apartment. We have a pet (but not a cat) and many -- not all, but many -- say cats are okay.

If flying over, make sure to investigate all the flight details long in advance -- since animals generally have to go in the cargo area for international flights (which means that their cages go out on the runway to be loaded) the airlines have regulations about temperatures on the day you fly, that sort of thing. In summer the issue will be heat. And different airlines have different regulations, so read up in advance. Delta, for example, won't take pets on its Boeing 767s, so when the time comes to book tickets be flexible, realize that you may have to arrange your route in part by what airlines will take cats and on what airplanes, and make sure that you're booking your tickets with an agent who knows what they're doing.

[pete6032]

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

It's going to be fairly easy to find a place that takes cats. You may have to pay a special pet deposit, but not necessarily. I don't think there's any difference between city or suburb, house or apartment. We have a pet (but not a cat) and many -- not all, but many -- say cats are okay.

Yes. Lots of places will accept cats but not dogs. Obviously cats are much less of a liability so that makes sense. For some units you may have to pay a "pet" deposit and pay an extra amount per month (usually around $25).

[think.reciprocity]

If you want to live in an apartment in Minneapolis you won't have any problem at all. I don't think you'll have a problem in general, either. I've lived in different places with the same mgmt company for MANY years (except a break when I moved to LA) & they accept pets (cats & dogs) in all of their bldgs. They are mostly Uptown Mpls.

From what I've seen in helping others look for apts, most now charge a regular rental deposit, plus a NON-refundable (SOMETIMES it's refundable) pet deposit (sometimes as much as $400), AND many even charge a monthly "pet rent". It's pretty common now.

About bringing cats into the USA - are there not quarantine rules too? I have a Service Dog & rules about bringing her in other countries even just to visit (back 8 years ago, at least) were awful.

Feel free to DM me if you have any questions about rentals.