A J.C. Hart Apartment Community in West Lafayette, IN
 

How To Find Pet-Friendly Apartments in West Lafayette

May 22, 2020

Apartment with dog

If you have a dog or cat or are looking to bring one home in the near future, you’re going to need to find a pet-friendly apartment in West Lafayette.  However, the “pet-friendly” term can actually be a bit misleading. Unfortunately, the “pet-friendly” term isn’t very well defined. Some pet-friendly properties may really allow you to have a a pet, but place restrictions on breed or size. While other West Lafayette apartments in the Discovery Park District might even have additional accommodations for your dog like dedicated areas for your dog to play or free waste disposal bags.

With such dramatic differences in pet-friendly apartments in West Lafayette, what criteria should you use to discover the one that is perfect for your needs?

Start By Reading Over The Community’s Pet Policy

Family walking with their dog on neighborhood trail

A community is only as friendly to dogs and cats as the apartment community’s pet policy. This policy outlines the guidelines you must follow concerning pet ownership. Some policies offer great flexibility and permit you to own any pet you’d like. Some have restrictions on the breeds of dogs. Others might put limitations on the number of pets, size or weight. And then some policies ban dogs entirely and only permit indoor cats or small caged animals.

Few apartments place limits on cat breeds. A policy that limits just how many animals are permitted in a single apartment is more likely. There also may be increased fees connected to your pets, such as higher monthly rent or cleaning costs after move-out, or a pet deposit due at move-in.

A pet policy with a lot of conditions doesn’t necessarily mean that the property isn’t friendly to animals—provided you fit within the parameters. However, if you have an animal such as an American Staffordshire Terrier or a Great Dane, or are fostering a whole lot of newborn kittens, you should probably carefully read over the policy before falling in love with the complex.

Inspect The Available Pet Amenities During Your In-Person Tour

Picture of dog park in our West Lafayette apartment community

Just as you would investigate the gym and pool on your tour, make sure to check the pet amenities. Dedicated dog parks help your pup run off some steam and give you a place where they can socialize. Stations with disposal bags, trash cans, and communal water bowls help maintain the community. Some complexes even have playdates or discounts on grooming for furry four-legged residents!

Even though these amenities seem great on paper, the measure of their friendliness to pets is how carefully they are kept up. If the place for dogs to play is covered with weeds and brambles, then it’s basically unusable. Complexes that welcome pets make sure that dog poop bags are always available and that the trash cans aren’t overflowing. When you set up your in-person tour in West Lafayette, be sure to note whether the amenities for pets are maintained as carefully as the ones for the humans.

Read Reviews To Discover Pet-Friendly Attitudes

If you can’t decide whether a property is a good place for a pet or not, be sure to take a look at reviews on the West Lafayette apartment. Many apartment dwellers see their dogs or cats as an integral part of their family and have no problem relating the good and the bad of living in a particular community. You may learn that the maintenance staff comes prepared with treats to pass out when making a service call to your apartment. Or that the complex’s office hosts a pet adoption event with the local humane society. You most likely can place those in the “friendly to pets” column.

Apartment reviews will also be able to tell you of the complexes that refuse to refund deposits when you move out because of costs associated with pet cleaning, or the ones who demand an inordinate amount of fees for dogs and cats. Just don’t let one unfavorable review affect your decision, but if you see a lot of angry pet owners, then you might think about looking at another community.

Continuum Apartments Can Be Your New Home In West Lafayette For You And Your Dog Or Cat

When you’re looking for a pet-friendly apartment in West Lafayette, be sure to consider Continuum Apartments. We’re glad to to have you visit the place where you and your cat or dog can call home. Contact us at (765) 476-0886 or select the schedule a tour button below.  We also offer virtual apartment tours! If you are unable to visit the property, explore our detailed virtual tours.