We are struggling to find a flat, let alone house with garden, that will allow a dog. We have a budget of 1700CHF / month. Does anyone know of any blocks, estate agents, landlords offering flats/ accommodation allowing dogs and with a garden/park/green space nearby?

Thanks so much in advance for your advice.

what kind of dog is it?

you may have to concede on the garden and resign yourself to taking a lot of walks. Or find a temporary flat while you continue to look.

In the Basel area I found a lot of ground floor apartments with gardens, but there was always something not to my liking, and none of them was fenced in a way to prevent the dogs from running away.

Plus if you see some of the threads about people being burgled, you may not want a ground floor apartment.

I have a flat on the water with about 1sqr KM of free land and a small rock beach. I think the young lady renting it wants to move out in the next couple of months. How soon would you need it if its available?

Well, if cathrynp6 in't interested, I am !! We have a dog too. Would you have more informations about where it is ? It would be for september or october 11.
But of course, only if cathrynp6 isn't interested !

i'm sure it depends on the dog, but is there a chance that your dog could be trained not run off. our garden isn't fenced, but our dog still sticks around.

to the OP, don't give up hope!

we searched homegate while still in the u.s. and did not select the filter to limit results to units accepting pets. we went about our search as though we didn't have a dog and then would ask for permission once things "got serious."

we found our garden level apartment relatively quickly this way. the landlord has never had pets in the building, but she really liked us and was willing to allow us our pet.

it never hurts to ask. the worst that happens is that the landlord says no.

There is more to finding a flat where a dog is allowed. In my experience, budget is becoming less significant than what size of dog you have, the breed and whether someone is home during the day. If you are living here with the dog, getting a good reference will make all the difference in the world.

Hi Phil

We have a very well behaved house trained jack russell.Do you know of or have any suitable accommodation to rent

Tx
Cathryn

Hi

Thank for your reply. Your place sounds interesting. Where is your property ? We are looking for a place from 1st August or asap in Winterthur or surrounding villages.

Thank you. That is a good idea !

Oh no, Im sorry. I just saw you guys are in Winterthur! The property is West of Zurich. I guess that doesnt help you

Im sorry about that. Thats pretty far away unless youre working in ZH?

True. It was the only thing my landlord was interested in before they agreed to allow my dogs. The strange thing was, they wanted to know the shoulder height, rather than the weight.

I have heard of that too. It is how tall the dog stands that is significant. I have to provide pictures too.

I don't work in Winterthur but Kanton Aargau still has dog friendly housing, provided one is willing to compromise and consider a longer commute.

Hi

Thanks for your reply. Pls let us know name of town so that we can see how long the commute would be. We still might be interested.

Thanks

Cathryn

Hi

Thanks for your reply. Pls let us know name of town so that we can see how long the commute would be. I would be at home and I speak english so it has advantages to be near Zurich ( an expat community). My husband would commute to Winterthur and it all depends on how long the commute would be. We still might be interested. Please could you send details

Thanks

Cathryn

I am in your same boat,

i also want a garden at ground level and have a dog.

I have seen about 15 apartments, its always missing something.. This one will have x, but the other will not etc..

Dont give up, keep searching, time is your best card to play, but be careful, do not set high expectations.

Gardens are rare, then when you add a pet, some dont allow pets

I really want to live in Wollerau but sometimes having a dog denies me a flat.

jetset and Mrs Doolittle have made excellent points about getting a reference from your previous landlords and not just filtering ads on homegate that allows pets.

Those two things are exactly what I did - albeit my dog isnt a large dog (in size anyways). I got a reference from my ex-landlord AND even my ex neighbour who loves my dog. They both attested that my dog is clean, (fairly) quiet, well behaved and never damaged anything in the house or property grounds.

Also, dont let omissions of "pets allowed" on the ad deter you. My current apartment didnt state that but I called anyway and after assuring the agency that I work from home as well as the references, they allowed me to view the property.

Another tip is also to bring your dog along for the viewings - shows the agency that he/she isnt a bouncy, yappy noisy thing but a calm and well trained pet. Worked when I went down to view an apartment in Feldmeilen. It was a brand new flat and the landlady was very reluctant to have her floors damaged. By the end of the viewing, we were offered the flat and she was cooing all over him. I didnt take the flat for convenience reasons.

Be prepared to sign a separate contract for your dog if necessary. I offered to do that to assure the agency (again - new building, we are the first tenants for the house). Terms like dog must not destroy communal areas, be off lead in the building etc etc are usual that I dont mind signing anyway as they are all reasonable and it makes them happy.

Sometimes, with a limited budget (I dont know what the housing situation is like in Winterthur) but it helps to relook at your expectations. If all houses with gardens or fields have been taken, and you need to walk a little further or take public transportation to exercise the dog, so be it. You'd be surprised at how many more options open up.

Hang in there and good luck.

The OP needs something by August 1st, (which is a national holiday so that affects moving dates and handovers). I would say time is not on her side.

As for high expectations, well, taking anything because it is "better than nothing" is never the best approach. I work with a checklist, one always has to compromise, but if your gut tells you something won't work, walk away.

Another tip:

When you have a dog, concentrate on the garden and 'dog-friendliness' of the property and neighborhood, and not on the house. If you accept that you will live in a less than pristine house/flat you may find the search easier.

When we first arrived, we rented a small house with the essentials in good working order but definitely not 'nice'. (Had it been mine I would have called it a renovation project.) But the house had a large garden, nice neighbors. Yes, our visitors may have looked down their noses at our accomodation, but who cares - we had a great space for the mutts, developed lasting friendships with the lovely people we met - and we really didn't have to worry much about canine wear and tear . With a nicer property, I'd have been terrified every time the dogs clickety-clacked over the parquet floors.

Another thing one may need to accept when renting with dogs - you will likely have to pay over the odds. It's a landlord's market - you probably need to look at properties where there is not so much competition - and that may mean stretching your budget.

Clone, if you are looking in Wollerau - why not go up the hill to Schindellegi/Feusisberg? Taxes are almost as low, there is slightly less competition. You might also contact agents handling properties for sale. Some of the less desireable properties have been on the market a while - the owners may be interested in renting if they can't sell. At least, can't hurt to ask.

Best of luck to you and your doglets.

thanks meloncollie,

My wife wants to be under 30min to Zurich, and Wollerau is right off the highway so its about 26-28min depending on the location.

I will expand my search, the other places you mentioned are about 31-35min it wouldnt be that bad.

Schindellegii i heard is super quiet...But i will check.. Its amazing how taxes are here, i jsut dont want to struggle with balancing my funds.