Pet Deposit vs Pet Fee vs Pet Rent: What Landlords Can Charge

A pet deposit is a refundable amount you hold against pet damage and return (minus lawful deductions) at move-out. A pet fee is a one-time, nonrefundable charge for allowing the pet. Pet rent is a monthly amount added to the rent for as long as the pet lives there. Where state law allows, you can charge more than one of them, but some states cap or ban them. California counts any pet deposit or pet fee toward its one-month security deposit cap and does not allow nonrefundable deposits. Colorado caps a pet deposit at $300 and pet rent at the greater of $35 a month or 1.5% of the monthly rent.

Before you charge any of them for an animal allowed as a disability accommodation, check your state's law and the current federal position, which changed during 2025 and 2026 (see the assistance animal section below). A tenant with any animal still pays for the actual damage it causes.

This guide compares the three charges, walks through the state rules we could verify from statute, covers assistance animals, shows a 12-month cost example, and lists what belongs in a pet addendum.

The three charges compared

The practical difference: a deposit protects you against damage but belongs to the tenant until you prove a deduction. A fee or pet rent is income, but it does not stop you from also charging the tenant for damage that exceeds the regular deposit.

Can you charge pet rent and a pet deposit?

In most states, yes, if the lease or a signed pet addendum says so and the amounts stay within your state's limits. Three things decide how far you can go:

1. Does your state cap security deposits, and does a pet deposit count? In capped states, a pet deposit is usually just more security, so it shares the cap with the regular deposit. See security deposit limits by state for each cap and its pet exceptions.
2. Does your state restrict nonrefundable fees? Some states ban them, require specific lease wording, or limit what you can collect up front.
3. Does your state cap pet charges directly? Colorado is the clearest example.

Check your state on the security deposit laws page and the landlord-tenant law hub, then check your city, since some cities add their own deposit and fee limits.

State rules we verified from statute

Examples, not a 50-state survey, as of October 2026:

California: every pet charge is security, capped at one month

California Civil Code section 1950.5 defines security broadly. The California Department of Real Estate's 2026 tenant guide puts it plainly: a security deposit "may be called last month's rent, security deposit, pet deposit, key fee, or cleaning fee," and the law treats all of them as part of the security deposit. The same guide says the law "does not allow for exceptions for pet deposits, key fees, or cleaning fees."

What that means for you:

• The cap includes the pet deposit. Since July 1, 2024, most landlords may collect no more than one month's rent in total security (Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)). A landlord who is a natural person, or an LLC whose members are all natural persons, and who owns no more than two residential rental properties with no more than four units in total may collect up to two months' rent, unless the tenant is a service member.
• No nonrefundable pet fee. A California rental agreement cannot call a deposit nonrefundable, and because any fee counts as security, a "nonrefundable pet fee" is treated as a refundable deposit.
• Coming April 1, 2027: SB 1296 (Stats. 2026, ch. 1025) adds Civil Code section 1942.7.5. Landlords must have a written pet policy or pet addendum, link it in online listings and give a copy with every rental application; applicants charged a screening fee without it may get a refund. If you rent in California, a written pet addendum you can attach to listings and applications will cover the document side of that rule.

A hypothetical example: you rent a California unit for $2,000 a month and are not a qualifying small landlord. If you already collect a $2,000 security deposit, you cannot add a $300 pet deposit. You could collect a $1,700 general deposit plus a $300 pet deposit instead. For the full rules, see California's security deposit law after AB 12 and the California deposit page.

Colorado: pet deposit capped at $300, pet rent capped too

Colorado Revised Statutes section 38-12-106, in effect since January 1, 2024, says:

• A landlord may not demand or receive an additional security deposit of more than $300 for a tenant's pet, and that deposit must be refundable.
• Pet rent may not exceed $35 a month or 1.5% of the monthly rent, whichever is greater.

So on $2,000 rent, 1.5% is $30, and the $35 figure is greater, so pet rent tops out at $35 a month. On $3,000 rent, 1.5% is $45, so the cap is $45. Colorado's general deposit cap is two months' rent (C.R.S. § 38-12-102.5).

Hawaii: separate pet deposit allowed, but not for assistance animals

Hawaii Revised Statutes section 521-44(b) caps the security deposit at one month's rent, plus an agreed pet deposit of up to one more month's rent. The pet deposit may not be required from a tenant who has no pet, or for an assistance animal that is a reasonable accommodation under Hawaii's fair housing law. The same subsection says the landlord may not require any money at the start of the rental agreement other than the first month's rent and the security deposit, so an up-front nonrefundable pet fee does not fit Hawaii's rules.

Washington: nonrefundable fees need written lease terms

Under RCW 59.18.285, money that is nonrefundable cannot be called a deposit or part of one. You may charge a nonrefundable fee only if the rental agreement is in writing and clearly says the fee is nonrefundable. If there is no written agreement, you owe the tenant the full amount; if the written agreement does not say "nonrefundable," the fee is treated as a refundable deposit. Washington sets no statewide deposit cap, but check your city.

Service animals and emotional support animals

The Fair Housing Act makes it unlawful to refuse "reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services" when needed to give a person with a disability equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling (42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B)). HUD's regulation, 24 CFR 100.204, gives an example directly on point: refusing to let a blind applicant live with a seeing eye dog under a no-pets policy is a violation.

What changed:

• The 2020 HUD assistance animal notice is withdrawn. FHEO-2020-01 told housing providers that support animals are not pets and that pet fees should not be charged for them. A Federal Register notice published April 6, 2026 lists it, along with the 2013 service animal notice (FHEO 2013-01), among guidance documents withdrawn effective September 17, 2025, and says they "should not be relied upon."
• The law itself did not change. The withdrawal notice says tenants can still file their own Fair Housing Act lawsuit in federal or state court within two years. HUD's enforcement choices do not bind courts or state agencies, and state laws, like Hawaii's, can still bar pet deposits for assistance animals. California's DRE guide says there is no allowance for an extra pet deposit for a tenant with a service or emotional support animal.

The practical approach as of October 2026:

• Trained service animals: do not charge a pet deposit, pet fee or pet rent. Treat the request as an accommodation, not a pet application.
• Emotional support and other untrained animals: HUD's guidance on these was withdrawn, but the Fair Housing Act, your state law and the courts may still require waiving pet charges. Check your state's fair housing law and get advice before charging.
• Damage is still the tenant's responsibility. Any tenant is liable for actual damage beyond normal wear and tear, including damage caused by an assistance animal, and you can deduct it from the regular security deposit following your state's return rules.

For the wider rules on accommodation requests, see fair housing laws for landlords.

Worked example: $300 deposit vs $25 a month pet rent

A hypothetical example: a tenant with one dog signs a 12-month lease. Compare two setups.

Now suppose the dog scratches a door and you spend $180 to repair it:

• Deposit setup: you deduct $180 with an itemized statement and return $120. Net to you: $180, all of it spent on the repair.
• Pet rent setup: you collected $300 in pet rent and deduct the $180 repair from the regular security deposit (if it covers the damage). Net to you: $300 of income plus the repair paid.

Pet rent earns more over a long tenancy; a deposit gives you a dedicated damage fund. Many landlords use both where state law allows. If you hold a pet deposit, the return rules are the same as for any deposit; see how to return a security deposit.

What goes in a pet addendum

Put every pet charge and rule in writing, signed by every tenant. A pet addendum attaches to the existing lease; what to put in a pet addendum has sample wording for each clause. It should cover:

• ☐ The approved animal: type, breed, color, weight, name and age
• ☐ Which charge applies (deposit, fee, pet rent) and the exact amount of each
• ☐ Whether each charge is refundable, in the words your state requires (Washington needs "nonrefundable" in writing)
• ☐ What the pet deposit may be used for and when it is returned
• ☐ That the tenant remains liable for pet damage beyond the deposit
• ☐ Vaccination and license requirements under local law
• ☐ Noise, waste cleanup, leash and common-area rules
• ☐ A ban on additional or replacement animals without written consent
• ☐ Renter's insurance with pet liability coverage, if you require it
• ☐ A statement that the addendum does not apply to assistance animals approved as a disability accommodation

For how addendums work in general, see the lease addendum guide. If you are writing a new lease, you can add pet terms in the lease agreement generator and attach the addendum.

Tax note

IRS Publication 527 says rental income is "any payment you receive for the use or occupation of property." Pet rent and nonrefundable pet fees fall under that definition, so report them as rental income in the year you receive them. A refundable pet deposit is not income when you receive it if you plan to return it; if you keep part of it because the tenant did not meet the lease terms, include the amount you keep in income that year.

Sources

Official sources cited above (checked 2026-10-27):

• California Civil Code section 1950.5, security deposits
• California Department of Real Estate, California Tenants guide (2026 edition)
• California Attorney General, Know Your Rights: Security Deposits
• California SB 1296 (2025-2026), pet policies
• Colorado Revised Statutes Title 38 (sections 38-12-102.5 and 38-12-106), official 2024 printout
• Hawaii Revised Statutes section 521-44, security deposits
• RCW 59.18.285, nonrefundable fees
• 42 U.S.C. 3604, Fair Housing Act discrimination provisions
• 24 CFR 100.204, reasonable accommodations
• HUD, Notification of Withdrawal of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Guidance Documents (FR Doc. 2026-06624)
• IRS Publication 527, Residential Rental Property