When you treat your Dalmatian, Dachshund, or Dogue de Bordeaux as a member of your family, it’s important to keep his needs in mind in any pending home purchase.
Ensuring whether local ordinances, regulations, and the neighborhood environment welcome dogs will affect how well your beloved pooch acclimates to your new home, and how much freedom there is for his or her activities.
Here are some tips to help you make sure that your future home and neighborhood are dog-friendly:
1. Check local requirements
For any potential home purchase, familiarize yourself with city and county ordinances that are in place for health and safety reasons. Often, they require you to obey leash laws and clean up after your dog in public places. Noncompliance can result in a fine. Many communities are striving to create and maintain environmentally friendly and dog-friendly parks. Information on what dog parks and playgrounds exist in the area of a potential home should be available from the local parks and recreation department.
If you plan to keep other animals besides a dog, such as chickens or horses, you should clarify the zoning regulations and ordinances with the proper officials. While house pets such as cats, dogs, birds, fish, and rabbits are acceptable in most types of housing, there may be restrictions on the total number of animals allowed in a single dwelling.
2. Ask for apartment or HOA rules
While a single-family home is likely to provide your dog with the most freedom, a townhouse, apartment, or condominium may be what fits your budget. For these options, check the townhouse or condo board rules and regulations for dogs. Homeowners associations (HOAs) typically govern condos and townhouses with rules and bylaws for what’s allowed, disallowed, and required. Some HOAs will allow dogs, but restrict them to certain areas on the property. You may face fines for violating the rules and bylaws.
3. Assess the home layout
Consider canine comforts inside and outside the home. Will your dog have enough yard our living space to live and play in without difficulty? Will your dog be happier with carpeting or tile floors? Note whether the windows are at floor level, as your pet can accidentally run into them. Check the layout of the home, and think about what would be needed to make your dog comfortable there. If your dog is older, stairs may be difficult, and he could be confined to a single floor in the house.
Examine the outside of the home, too. Is there a doghouse or place for your dog to roam? Is the yard fenced? If you have a big, hairy dog, you might want a garden faucet to use when bathing your pet.
If a pet is a central part of your life, you will find personal enjoyment in your future house only if it accommodates the needs of your pet. As you consider the needs of your family, including your dog, decide what you must have and what you can compromise on. You can also speak casually to potential neighbors to see if they are dog-friendly. After all, a happy dog makes a happy owner.
Updated from an earlier version by Susan Wellish
By: Patricia-Anne Tom
This article “3 Tips for Pet Owners When Purchasing a Home” appeared first on “Real Estate News and Insights” from realtor.com.
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