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APARTMENT GUIDE 1
FURRY FRIENDS
Pet owners struggle finding housing options
Even pet-friendly apartments have restrictions and costs to put limits on animal roommates
BY BARBARA PLATTS
bplatts@kansan.com
Looking for an apartment can be a difficult process, and bringing a house pet along is another, more expensive obstacle.
Every housing complex has a different policy on house pets. Meadowbrook Apartments, a popular housing community at the intersection of Bob Billings Parkway and Crestline Road, puts a 50-pound weight limit on pets and does not allow any in its new buildings. Another well-known set of apartments, The Reserve on 31st Street, has a no-pet policy, with the exception of fish in a tank with a capacity of 10 gallons or less.
Joe Wertzberger, Manhattan senior and current owner of an Australian shepherd mix, named Murphy, said many difficulties arose when trying to find an apartment that allowed pets.
"When you have a dog you have to get that out in the first couple questions to the landlord." Wertzberger said, "Fifty percent of the time they don't allow pets, and a lot of the time they have weight limits for them, as well as a pretty hefty deposit."
Wertzberger and his two roommates rent a house from personal owners, who Wertzberger said are easier to work with than a managing company.
"At our current house there is no weight limit (for the dog)," Wertzberger said. "Personal owners usually allow pets and can be more lenient about the situation."
It may be harder to accommodate a pet when renting from a managing company. Hilary Leibold, Chicago senior, faced a 25-pound weight limit and many other
Barbara Platts/KANSAN
Joe Wertzberger, Manhattan senior, and his Australian shepherd mix, Murphy, live in a house that is personally owned. He said it was easier to have pets with personal owners because they are often more lenient than managing companies.
FEBRUARY 26, 2009
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN