The debate has erupted with renewed vigor on the Web about how far can rental owners go when setting selection criteria for tenants? Is the desire to rent an apartment only to Russian citizens or representatives of a certain nationality acceptable? Is the unwillingness to let tenants with children or animals in, or even an increase in prices for them – correct? The “RG” correspondent tried to figure out how acute this problem is and whether it can be somehow solved. And at the same time I tried to rent an apartment with a small child in my arms.
It will not be easy for such a family to rent an apartment – landlords often do not like children. Photo: REUTERS
It’s time to give up
Actually, a new round of discussion of the old topic did not arise from scratch. A new rule has been introduced in the Flats for Friends rental housing search group on the Facebook social network: if you want your apartment to be advertised for free, then in addition to the photo and description, there must be one sentence. Here it is: “The apartment is pet-friendly, residents of all nationalities, origins, genders, ages, love preferences are welcome.” Pet-friendly means pets are welcome too.
If this text in your ad does not suit you and you want to indicate that the apartment is rented “only to the Slavs” or “strictly without children and animals”, then – pay. The amount is small – only 499 rubles, but this rule divided people into two camps. One innovation was supported – many are tired that in search of an apartment they have to weed out a lot of options, because, you see, your dog can spoil the master’s wallpaper. No matter how educated she was. Others objected: I let people into my home, which means I can set the rules and shouldn’t have to pay for it!
The problem is as old as the world. The author of these lines moved to Moscow 10 years ago and remembers well that the owners of non-Russian passports or a non-European cut of the eyes, the owners of rented apartments were not happy to see even then. These or those restrictions are found in about every second announcement, although the balance changes from time to time. In recent months, for example, the demand for rented apartments has grown sharply, and landlords have become stricter on tenants – the number of ads with intolerant marks has crept up.
“Of course, the high demand provoked changes in the behavior of landlords – they have become more picky in the choice of tenants, set various restrictions – for example, by gender, age or nationality, marital status and composition,” confirms the deputy director of the apartment rental department of the INKOM Real Estate agency Oksana Polyakova: “Today, no more than 20% of landlords of apartments in the mass market give permission to accommodate residents with children and pets, although in the fall of the crisis for the rental market last year, there were 48% of them.”
It’s easier for childless
The Flats for friends group is one of the most popular profile communities in social networks. It brings together almost 240 thousand people and helps landlords and tenants find each other directly without intermediaries. This allows those looking for rental housing to save on the realtor’s commission, and the owners – to communicate in advance with potential tenants directly and at the same time study their profiles on social networks. The group administrator says she introduced the new condition for a reason – community members have been asking for this for a long time. Many of them supported this decision, but there were also opponents.
To better understand the latter, let’s conduct an experiment. The “RG” correspondent lived for eight years in Moscow in rented apartments, but he always looked for them with his wife, we had no children or animals. And constant work, Russian citizenship and a rather intelligent look made me and my wife even ideal lodgers. Therefore, I did not pay attention to all these conventional “only Slavs”. However, for the last year and a half I have been living in my apartment, and recently a child was born. Therefore, I try on the role of a young father looking for a temporary corner in the capital.
Now I look with irritation at ads with all sorts of conditions. “Is that, to me childless, you would give your battered odnushka with pleasure, but with your daughter you won’t even listen?” – an inner voice says indignantly after reading the next “no children, no animals.” On one of these announcements I call – the realtor picks up the phone and immediately cuts off, they say, it’s said, without children. The second, after hearing the story about working as a journalist and a very young daughter, took pity – I will try to talk to the hostess. And he was gone. The second call confirmed the fears – the hostess does not want children in any, as well as animals.
I look further and come across a similar ad allegedly from the owner. I’m calling. An elderly woman answers the phone and at first suspects that I am a realtor. But then he changes his mind, and to my question why it’s impossible with children, he explains: “I have nothing against children, I raised two myself. apartment for a couple with two children. They turned out to be very active, ran around the apartment, knocked toys on the floor, shouted. Nothing criminal, but a month later the neighbors called me downstairs and said: if you don’t find other tenants, we will complain to the district police officer. neighbors and sort things out with the police? “
The house is not for a cat
Oksana Polyakova confirms: when setting conditions on the composition of tenants, the owners usually pursue two goals – to save repairs and not get problems with neighbors. Visitors from Central Asia, for example, are not happy because they often settle in large groups in order to save money. However, because of this, repairs wear out quickly, and neighbors can also express dissatisfaction. As a rule, they do not want to see children and animals among tenants for fear of good repairs and furniture.
By the way, it should be borne in mind that restrictions and wishes for future tenants are not always spelled out in advertisements – they are often expressed orally already during a conversation. And it also happens that in the announcement about the ban on children and cats it is written, but during the conversation it still turns out to agree on viewing. But this is rather an exception, especially now, when there are more people who want to rent an inexpensive apartment than these very apartments.
by the way
Money opens doors
So what, for whom is it easier to rent a house, and for whom is it almost unrealistic? According to the owners of rented apartments, ideal tenants are a married couple with a permanent job in Moscow and registration at the place of residence in the capital or the Moscow region or in the region of the Russian Federation. Difficulties arise if there are children and pets. Nationality and citizenship also matter – without a Russian passport, the search for rental housing will turn into a quest. But if you are patient, then you can overcome it. Budget is also important – if you are willing to pay above the market, you can overcome any prejudices.
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