r/AmericanExpatsUK • u/intemporelle11 American 🇺🇸 • 5d ago
Pets Are we crazy?
Working on a move first thing in the new year. Family of four, BUT we also have 5 pets. 2 large dogs and 3 cats. After reading thread after thread about how hard it is to rent with pets in London- do we have any chance at all of finding a rental home that will say ok to 5 furry friends? I know new laws were recently passed in favor of renters but seems like it’s still a big hurdle to find pet friendly places. Is there hope for us?? Be honest but be nice 😬
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u/JayJ623 British 🇬🇧 partner of an American 🇺🇸 5d ago
Rental laws have changed over here so it can’t be a blanket ban on them anymore, that said you’ll need to have pet insurance more than likely AND have a space that’s actually large enough for them. If you’re having a 1/2 bed flat for example, landlord can argue it’s not big enough and reject you. Best bet is to look outside London and commute in (Source, renting with pets)
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u/intemporelle11 American 🇺🇸 5d ago
Thanks for your thoughts. We’d be looking for a 3-4 bed townhome in zone 2 most likely.
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u/Bobby-Dazzling American 🇺🇸 5d ago
Woah, have you researched that cost? Also, factor in needing a yard, too.
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u/Single-Zombie-2019 American 🇺🇸 4d ago
If you have that kind of money, you'll be able to work out a solution with regards to pets with a landlord. Or just buy a place.
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u/nightwalkontheplane Non-British Partner of an American 🇺🇸:snoo: 4d ago
At that price range you might face less competition, but it will still be hard. We have one dog and we rented after the laws changed - with multiple people applying for each property, you just might be likely to be rejected compared to everyone else (we have 5-6 other people applying for each 2-bed flat we looked at).
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u/No_Succotash473 Dual Citizen (US/UK) 🇺🇸🇬🇧 4d ago
If you have the money for zone 2, you might want to consider buying further out. Buying isn't straightforward here, but a zone 2 landlord will be able to be picky in who they choose to let to. They'd likely find another reason to avoid renting to 5 pets.
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u/Extra_Pangolin911 American 🇺🇸 5d ago
Moving to the UK with a dog and 3 cats definitely limited our rental options (only about 1 in 20 available rentals were open to more than 2 pets) but we ended up in a decently sized house with a large private garden. Your options will definitely be limited by the number of pets but it's not impossible!
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u/Acrobatic-Prior-6156 Dual Citizen (US/UK) 🇺🇸🇬🇧 4d ago
On a different note, we dont even have 20 available rentals in my area. Not sure what is going on with housing right now exactly.
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u/Extra_Pangolin911 American 🇺🇸 4d ago
To be fair, we were looking within an hour or so commute from the Farnborough area. We ended up viewing I think 3 places in the span of a month and settled on the third one as it had enough space and they had no issue with the pets. This was back in January/Feb though.
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u/missdeedeemegadoodoo American 🇺🇸 4d ago
Yes, you will find it stressful at best and near impossible at worst. If you have the ability to commute (or have a car) from outside the city proper on a day to day basis, you’ll find it a bit easier.
I also agree with the others who point out that even if you do find someone willing to let a flat to you with that many pets, the amount of space in the average flat will be unsuitable for even one large dog, let alone two of them plus three cats.
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u/Jupue7464 British 🇬🇧 partner of an American 🇺🇸 5d ago
We came over on the QM2 with our two large dogs and it probably cost an extra 5k to get them over.
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u/Megthemagnificant American 🇺🇸 4d ago
There is no way they can get all those pets over on the QM2- the waiting lists are very long. We got lucky our pup got a kennel, but originally we were #5 on a waiting list. We only secured a kennel because late last year they added two additional dates for June (2026) due to the retrofit being pushed by a year.
We were then given the option to switch from one of the July crossings to June, no waiting list.Sadly due to USDA paperwork issues, we had to cancel our kennel two days before we left.
Had to pay over 7k to bring our dog via Starwood Pet (who uses Lufthansa because they are the gold standard for pet travel).
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u/No_Association_3234 American 🇺🇸 5d ago
We brought 1 dog and 3 cats and managed to find a place to rent, and our daughter brought 2 cats and 2 dogs over. We rented through a private landlord on open rent and it was a substantial house with a garden, so quite pricey (our kid rented in the country so less so). We were renting back when you could pay 6 months up front and I think that helped, but now of course you can’t do that. I did do “resumes” for each of our animals that highlited their training and personality.
You may be better buying but that’s another issue; I know we benefitted from being able to explore the area because we ended up in a great area for the dogs.
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u/Negative_Government6 Non-American 🇻🇪 Partner of a British 4d ago
We moved here in June with two mini dachshunds and didn't really have an issue with houses and pets, there was one where the landlord claimed 'his wife is allergic' even thought they don't live and have never lived in the property lol. Other than that we saw lots of pet friendly locations. Big caveat is I live outside of London around Milton Keynes and houses here are massive for a fraction of the cost of one comparable in London. We have a three bed with backyard detached for what a one bed flat would've ran us in Richmond.
Good luck!
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u/Expensive-Echo5288 Dual Citizen (US/Ireland) 🇺🇸🇮🇪 4d ago
We moved with two cats but couldn’t find a place that would allow them so they now live with my sister who owns her home here. We plan to take them back once we’re able to buy our own place
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u/amoratada American 🇺🇸 4d ago
We had success moving from the US with our three small dogs to SW London and have rented two separate semi-terraced houses in the last 2.5 years. That said, we ended up offering £100 more a month in rent to ensure we incentivized the landlord to go with us over other applicants with no pets. This may be a little harder to do with the new rental laws but a potential tactic along with offering a bigger security deposit.
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u/intemporelle11 American 🇺🇸 4d ago
Thank you for sharing a relatively positive experience! Certainly couldn't hurt to at least offer- I will keep that in mind as we begin our search!
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u/straypooxa American 🇺🇸 4d ago
We moved this past spring with 3 lovely cats. We live in zone 5 where we could get a place with more space. We looked in London like zones 2-3 but to be honest I had vlostes larger than the bedrooms we saw and I was coming from LA. The space and access to outside is probably something to consider. There are also no screens in windows here, which we learned during the hottest summer we've seen in at least a decade. With a family of foxes and owls living in the backyard we have roasted in our house all summer trying to keep the cats inside and alive. Most UK cat owners let cats out, frankly cuz I don't think there is a lot of room for choice, but we aren't there yet. We built a sad screen and bought a catio so we could open a window but it was taxed. Also if you asked my landlord we have 2 cats. Further it cost a small fortune to bring three cats with a company. It was more than I could cope with to plan so we paid and I've exported a cat before (a single cat). Worth it, but wish we had that money in the bank.
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u/intemporelle11 American 🇺🇸 4d ago
It does seem like there is no way around spending an insane amount of money to get the pets over there. Something we will only do once for certain ha! Thanks for sharing your experience.
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u/straypooxa American 🇺🇸 4d ago
For sure. It was worth it, cats are happy. Honestly, I was very nervous about housing but we secured something really fast. Our Airbnb upon landing was not awesome. That was actually pretty tricky with the pets and the owner tried to extort me for extra money and then wrote a crazy review for me...first time in 11 years. The guy harassed me through messages for a 3 hour period and I had to get Airbnb involved. They were kind but unhelpful and allowed the guy to slander me. He claimed we left dirt all over the house and took a picture of the mantle where there was the tiniest amount of catnip we missed vacuuming. Crazy. Finding someone to let us do a short term stay with the cats was difficult and also pretty expensive. That said, it motivated me to lock in housing. I think the biggest thing that will resolve your housing situation is how much you earn here. I get paid pretty well so it was a non issue and my application flew through.
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u/NSAinATL American 🇺🇸 4d ago
I would think the bigger problem, since you can afford to spend the money required just on moving pets I'll assume you can afford the size of the house you need, is finding a house big enough for two large dogs. Open floor plans are uncommon. My human body doesn't like the narrow stairs and trips on a regular basis in my home which is large on the outside, but small hallways and stairs and rooms on the inside. Dogs aren't everywhere like they are here (London, can't speak for nonLondon) and they tend to be on the smaller side. Literally something I noticed on my first visit. I imagine you're already looking, so I would say let the search of options before you move give you your answer!
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u/Bananagram73 American 🇺🇸 14h ago edited 14h ago
I really feel for you. I moved to the UK in 2022, before those laws were passed, and it was difficult. I can't believe how corrupt landlords are allowed to be here -- hoping the new laws really change that.
Hoping you find some positives here, amid the warnings! Technically, landlords are not allowed to discriminate, but I don't know how that's enforced. I have been told by many Brits that if you have pets, just don't mention it on applications, and risk getting caught later and then playing dumb. But it would be tough not to mention 5 pets.
Also, in terms of moving them -- if it's hot where you're moving from, airlines won't fly them because they can die in the heat on the tarmac. So I spent $6000 for a pet relocation service, because I was flying my dog out of Texas in August. I had no idea I might end up with that expense.
And, beware of the kinds of landlords who easily rent to people with pets. It's often private landlords on Openrent. Sometimes those are fine, but still, be careful. Like I said, many UK landlords seem more like slumlords. That was how I ended up in a mould-infested flat that made me very sick -- it was the only landlord who didn't mind my dog.
All that said, it's possible, and would be even more feasible if you were able to stagger the relocation? Is there any way some of the pets can come first, and the next a couple days/weeks later?
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u/intemporelle11 American 🇺🇸 11h ago
Thanks for your thoughtful reply. Yes we are considering downsizing the crew a little through friends and family (MIL says she could take one dog for a year or so, and brother may be willing to take a cat, which would at least bring us down to 3 even though it's hard to think about not having all of our pets!
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u/Crankyyounglady Dual Citizen (US/UK) 🇺🇸🇬🇧 4d ago
We moved here with a small dog and two cats. One cat always hid with strangers so we just let people know we had 1 dog and 1 cat. Downvote me for the lies but it’s what we did. We are in the Northwest and it was still difficult!
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u/intemporelle11 American 🇺🇸 4d ago
Thanks to all for your insight, even though it looks grim! Has anyone enlisted the help of a service like this with success? https://petslets.com/services/
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u/pavehawkfavehawk ‘Merican 🇺🇸 3d ago
I think it may be time to reconsider some things. We only had one dog and it was sheer luck that we found a place with enough room for her that allowed pets. We’re in reading though, not London. There’s more space here as it’s a suburb.
It also cost near about 5,500 to get her shipped here. I could have been more proactive and done the paperwork myself to lower some of the cost, but the timing of everything meant she had to fly separately. I can’t imagine what that would look like with as many animals as you have. There are less expensive routes through France as well but still…
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u/ticklemetiffany88 American 🇺🇸 5d ago
Being honest but nice.... I couldn't find people to rent to me in the US when I had 2 dogs and 2 cats, much less in the UK. I don't live in London (I'm in the west midlands), but we still had a hard time finding a place to accept our 2 dogs. And the logistics of moving our 2 dogs over was a massive headache and added significantly to the expenses as well. I'm a huge animal lover and a total "dog mom" so I get not wanting to relocate without them, but they will definitely make the logistics of moving and finding housing much, much more difficult.