Americans love their pets and treat them like part of the family—a reality that successful property managers increasingly see as a key factor in tenant satisfaction and retention.

According to Zillow data, 59% of renters report having at least one pet, with 40% having a dog. Meanwhile, the American Pet Products Association reports that 66% of U.S. households own a pet—equating to 86.9 million households nationwide.

A 2025 report from Michelson Found Animals reinforces the business case for pet-friendly policies, showing that pet-inclusive rental properties enjoy significant benefits: residents with pets stay up to 21% longer than those without. Yet despite these advantages, the same report reveals that 72% of renters struggle to find pet-friendly housing—representing a major opportunity for property managers.

With pets being such an important part of so many households, a strict "no pets allowed" policy simply isn't feasible for most properties looking to maximize occupancy and minimize turnover. However, welcoming pets does create some specific administrative challenges.

"Most property managers don't have a very streamlined application flow when it comes to pets," explains Tatiana Meduna, Product Operations Manager at Findigs. "This creates a lot of back-and-forth communication with applicants—send me a picture, send me the updated ESA documentation, send me the vaccination records. Without the right systems, managing all these verification details can quickly become overwhelming."

Let's explore how thoughtful and efficient pet screening can help you welcome responsible pet owners while maintaining your properties to your standards.

Understanding the different types of animals in rental housing

When creating pet policies, it's important to understand the distinctions between different types of animals that might live in your properties:

Household pets make up about 80% of animals in rental housing, according to Findigs' internal data. These are the dogs, cats, and other animals that residents keep as companions and that are subject to your standard pet policies.

Service animals are trained to perform specific tasks for people with disabilities. "A service animal is providing a service for the medical well-being of the human," Meduna explains. "Within the housing world, you most commonly see service dogs—guide dogs, heart attack alert, seizure alert dogs. These dogs are highly trained."

The law limits the verification process for service animals. According to ADA guidelines, when it is not obvious what service an animal provides, only limited inquiries are allowed. Staff may ask two questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability, and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform. Staff cannot ask about the person's disability, require medical documentation, require a special identification card or training documentation for the dog, or ask that the dog demonstrate its ability to perform the work or task. 

As Meduna notes, "This simplifies what we ask—yes, this is a service animal; yes, I require it for my medical well-being; and yes, it performs medical-related tasks. We keep the property manager compliant and are respectful to the applicant."

Emotional support animals (ESAs) provide comfort to individuals with mental health conditions. Unlike service animals, they don't require specialized training to perform specific tasks, but they serve an important therapeutic purpose by providing emotional support and alleviating symptoms of a person's disability. ESAs must be recommended by a licensed mental health professional who has determined that the animal's presence is necessary for the individual's mental health treatment plan. This recommendation typically comes in the form of a letter from a qualified healthcare provider who is actively treating the individual.

ESAs present unique verification challenges because they're exempt from typical pet restrictions and fees, yet documentation can be difficult to authenticate. Property managers need reliable systems to verify legitimate ESA documentation while respecting residents' needs.

Creating pet policies that suit your properties

When crafting pet policies, finding the right balance helps you welcome pet owners while protecting your property. Here are the essential components to include in pet-friendly policies:

• Types of animals welcomed: Be clear about which companions are welcome in your community. While most properties accommodate cats and dogs, consider your approach to birds, small caged animals, or aquarium pets. When it comes to breed restrictions, some properties choose to implement them based on insurance requirements or liability concerns, while others focus on individual pet behavior assessments.
  
  
• Reasonable pet limits: Define how many pets are allowed per unit. Many properties establish a specific number (such as two pets per household) based on unit size and property considerations.
  
  
• Thoughtful size considerations: Some properties implement weight limits, while others take a more location-based approach. Consider whether different areas of your property might accommodate different sizes of pets—ground floor units might be suitable for larger dogs, while upper floors might be better suited for smaller pets.
  
  
• Health safety measures: Focus on core vaccinations that protect both pets and people. Rabies vaccines are essential for dogs and cats, along with standard preventative care like DHPP for dogs and FVRCP for cats. Clear timelines for documentation updates help everyone stay on track. "If you're having dogs and animals that can carry diseases, let's make sure those animals are being vaccinated correctly," advises Ellie Barney, Product Manager at Findigs.
  
  
• Community considerations: Outline behavior expectations that support community harmony, such as guidelines around quiet hours, leash use in common areas, and responsible supervision.
  
  
• Clean community commitments: Set clear expectations about waste cleanup, provide convenient disposal stations, and consider designated pet relief areas to make responsible pet ownership easy.
  
  
• Fee structure and deposits: Clearly outline any pet deposits, one-time fees, or monthly pet rent. Transparency about these costs helps build trust with potential residents and prevents surprises during the lease signing process.
  
  
• Amenities and accommodations: Consider what pet-friendly features your property offers, such as designated relief areas, waste stations, walking paths, or washing stations that make pet ownership more convenient for residents. "Buildings that have dog-friendly spaces or grooming stations are really attractive to pet owners," Meduna explains. "Communities that create spaces where pets are welcome also tend to build stronger resident connections."
  
  
• Policy review process: Establish how often you'll evaluate the effectiveness of your pet policies and what metrics you'll use to measure success, such as impact on occupancy rates, resident satisfaction, or maintenance costs.

Challenges of manual pet screening

For property managers handling pet screening manually, the process can be time-consuming and inconsistent. Without specialized tools, you're likely dealing with:

• Multiple back-and-forth communications with applicants
• Challenges verifying documentation authenticity
• Time-intensive research on vaccination records
• Difficulty validating ESA documentation

All of these challenges create more work for your team and potentially delay move-ins, affecting both your bottom line and the resident experience.

The Findigs edge: A better way to verify pet information

When it comes to pet screening, property managers have several solutions to choose from. At Findigs, we call our approach "pet verification" because we focus on comparing pet information against your specific property policies as part of our comprehensive tenant screening process. This verification is fully integrated with our tenant screening platform, creating a unified experience for both property managers and applicants.

Our approach offers several key advantages:

We handle the verification details

Our specialists go beyond just collecting documentation. "The research that we get done is extensive," Barney explains. "When needed, we will even call offices to make sure that the letters are valid."

This thorough approach includes verifying the legitimacy of mental health professionals providing ESA documentation, confirming vaccination records, and maintaining detailed records of all pet information.

Decisions come back quickly

Manual verification can take days, especially when documentation is incomplete or unclear. With Findigs, you typically receive verification decisions for household pets within one hour, with ESA documents verified within a day.

According to our data from 300,000 applications sampled between January 2023 and February 2024, pet verification decisions are returned in about an hour (median processing time), helping you fill vacancies faster.

We help with ongoing management

Throughout a lease term, residents may adopt new pets or need to update documentation. "We'll make sure their documentation stays current," notes Barney. "Whether it's updating ESA letters annually or tracking vaccination renewals, we can handle those details."

When your residents add a new pet to their household, they can verify that pet through Findigs at any time—no need to create new processes or paperwork.

We help minimize legal risks

Improper handling of service animal or ESA requests can lead to significant legal consequences for property managers. Service animals are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), while emotional support animals are protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA).

Federal fines for FHA violations can reach up to $75,000 for a first offense and $150,000 for subsequent violations. Most service animal lawsuits settle for $15,000–$100,000, but total costs—including legal fees, required training, and possible civil penalties—can exceed $200,000. Cases involving intentional denial or repeat violations often trigger Department of Justice enforcement and higher penalties.

Professional verification helps ensure compliance with fair housing laws by providing consistent, standardized documentation review. At Findigs, we focus on following legal requirements when reviewing documentation for both pets and assistance animals, carefully adhering to what information we can and cannot request under the law. This systematic approach helps protect property managers from potential violations while still efficiently processing applications.

What makes the Findigs approach different

With Findigs, you get:

• A unified application process: Pet information is collected alongside other applicant information in one smooth experience.
• Clear communication of your policies: Your specific requirements are presented clearly to applicants.
• Complete verification: Our specialists handle all aspects of verification, from vaccination records to ESA documentation.
• Results in one place: All verification results appear in the same dashboard as other applicant information.
• Ongoing support: The platform allows for adding new pets and updating documentation throughout the lease term.

Building communities where people (and their pets) thrive

Thoughtful pet policies and pet screening don't just make things easier for your team—they create a better experience for your residents and their pets. The right approach combines clear policies, consistent application of the rules, and thorough verification. This helps reduce vacancies, increase resident satisfaction, and create communities where both humans and their beloved pets can thrive.

As Meduna notes, "People love their pets—and they're going to move in with their pets." By making pet verification part of your standard process, you're showing current and future residents that you understand what matters to them—and that their four-legged family members are welcome, too, so long as they follow the rules.