Pet owners are about to have the ‘upper paw,’ as new rental reforms are set to favour pet owners as early as the start of next year.

Property managers are expecting a wave of new pet applications from current tenants and new renters, as landlords will have a harder time rejecting pet applications with the new rental legislations coming into place in the first half of 2025.

Anne Crarey executive general manager of property services at Little Real Estate warned there were still risks for tenants.

“It’s really important for pet owners to be responsible with their animals as it can create more wear and tear on a property. Tenants need to make sure their pets are suitable for the space they’re living in,” she said.

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Ruth Neech, renter who had to be separated from her pet Coco when she couldn’t secure a pet-friendly rental.

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For those wanting to take advantage of the new legislations, Ms Crarey suggested showing a puppy school certificate to prove your animal is well trained, offering to steam clean the carpets at the end of your tenancy, add flea fumigation and references from previous tenants about the pet in the pet application.

“Let your landlord know how often your pet gets groomed to show its coat is maintained and how often you walk your pet to show it has enough exercise and is stimulated and not going to bark all day,” she said.

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Anne Crarey, executive general manager of property services at Little Real Estate.

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Adding where the pet would spend the most time in the application would also help, she added.

Ruth Neech experienced a “distressing” time when she first moved to Sydney and had to leave her pet jack-russell cross chihuahua Coco in the Hunter Valley with her family, as she couldn’t find a rental that would allow her a pet.

“I’d already changed cities and was building a new life from scratch, so to have to do that separated from my beloved little furry friend made it emotionally much harder,” she said.

Finding a pet-friendly rental was a “game changer,” and she was glad the new rental reforms would allow renters the “life-enriching experience of owning a pet,” and not prevent them the security of a home

Ruth Neech and her dog Coco.

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“At a time of stress, having the volatility of not knowing where you will call home, the last thing anyone wants is to be forced to part with the love and comfort of their pet,” she said.

“I don’t have children and for me, Coco is the love of my life and I want to give her the best life I can, which means being together,” Ms Neech said.

Ms Neech said adding nice pictures of Coco, talking about her personality including her likes and dislikes as if she were a person, and emphasising that she was a house-trained dog helped.

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