Outrageous! Seiously, I never would have expected this when trying to find a rental for myself and my 4 year old. She will be in school until 6pm each day, which would be better than having a younger person with no kids moving in that are up all night. One person turned me down because they have an office underneath and the other one did because they live on the bottom floor. Who are they expecting to rent out their apartment to? I would think a single parent with a kids would be ideal since they wouldn't be up all night partying. How can they do they legally in PA? I feel like I'm never going to find a place
i agree that kids can be loud, peeon the floors..lol...but seriously single people without kids pee on the floors and drink all night...lol..you think they'd rather have a kid above who will be away til 6pm every night and then in bed by a decent hour then an adult who parties like a kid.......and plays wii jumping arnd like a kid...its crazy!
Julie I understand that some parents are the worst? but i would say that those same people would be bad without kids! I mean come on shes 4 she cant trash a place more than a bunmch of grown adults partying could! And to suggest living in a complex where they'll let in anybody seems really ssafe...i mean thats like saying go to the crappy neighborhoods, because although unsafe they'll let in anyone....awesome...so not only will they not care about my kid making noise, but they won't care about people trashing the place or junkies either?
I also understand they CAN do what they want I'm just bummed, and never thought I'd meet this resistance...my kids calmer than most adults, shes laid back and honestly we're hardly home between school, parks, visiting familes...
I know in MA that's illegal! Before we owned a home we looked at a 3 bedroom duplex and the guy said no as soon as we said we had kids....who else do you rent a 3 bedroom duplex to??? A group of college kids......ugh!
We ended up in a town house and the people next to us were 3 divorced brothers they trashed the place, were drunk all the time, loud, blasting music at 2 am....it was horrible.
Apartment hunting sucks
You don't want to live above anybody with kids. It's a constant game of "ssshhh, dont walk so loud, stop jumping" and going to the door apologizing to your downstairs neighbor. It sucks that the decision was taken away from you, but, I'm sure the landlords have had this same experience and, having learned from experience, now know better. Look for a little duplex. The rent is usually cheaper than a house, but you still have a yard and no worries about complaining downstairs neighbors.
I think its discrimination plain and simple.
"No Children" rentals were around when my parents were renting. Its not new. 55+ rentals or communities are more discriminatory, but I don't care I wouldn't buy there or rent there. I couldn't have my grandchildren come and stay with M. in some of thse places.
Good luck to you and yours.
That is Really Shitty :-( But you dont want to be renting from those kinds of people anyways. Dont be discouraged...... your new Place is out there !!
I bet those places had cockroaches ;-)
I feel you!!! If I was a landlord I would take a single parent over early twenties any day of the week! I was surprised when I went through a similar experience. It's outrageous and very depressing. If you go through a realtor they will not discriminate as much - they will rent to the first qualified applicant. Also, apartment complexes are unlikely to care. Not ideal, but sometimes they have towhomes that feel a little more homey. Plus 24 hour maintenance and the amenities are always nice. Keep your head up! You don't want to rent from people like that anyways... ;)
EDIT: What adults are you spending time with? MOST adults are NOT rowdier than a four-year-old. Not every single person stomps around peeing on the floor. I rented a second floor apartment for many years when I was single and can't recall doing either. These people probably wouldn't rent to a slacker/college kid either!
Simply stated, they would prefer not to have a child (and everything that goes along with your child) upstairs. If they own the property, they can rent to whomever they want. Keep looking- you'll find something! What about a small house or townhouse?
There's a real anti-child movement these days (think restaurants and airplanes), so I'm not floored you're facing this.
J. be glad you found out now that these people hate children/blanketly discriminate. You are 100 percent right in that they should see you as far more attractive tenants than singles who may party all night.
There are good landlords out there. J. keep looking.
ETA: The noisiest apt. neighbors I ever had were all men. An elderly man below M. blasted carnival music at 6 am. Two guys above M. in college lifted weights and were apparently lousy at it. Constant dropping of weights on the floor. And a single guy next to M. would run his garbage disposal all the time and at odd hours 24/7 (never did figure that out; probably don't want to know).
Good luck!
It's not anti-child, it's anti having your rental property trashed. As someone whose family owns a number of rental properties, people with small children are often the worst. That's not to say you are, but some landlords have been burned enough so they don't want to rent to anyone with kids. It's their property-they can do what they want with it! You would probably have much better luck renting at a complex. Most of those rent to everyone and have firmer regulations in place, which can really work to your benefit.
In response to your Swh: the parents are certainly not controlling their kids, but it's the kids doing a lot of damage-holes knocked in walls, broken windows and appliances, plumbing nightmares, bathtub and sink overflows, scratches and tears in carpeting and on flooring-the list goes on! More often than not in our experience kids=damage. I'm not saying that is YOU or your daughter, but landlords learn after a few times so they adopt an across-the-board policy. I'm J. trying to explain to you why they won't rent to you. It's not because they're child haters or mean or out to get you. Yes, sometimes adults cause the same problems but usually not as many as children.
Point out to the landlords that unless a property/ community is designated as an "over 55 community" (and they have to meet certain requirements to do so) that HUD protects renters and buyers of property from landlords and sellers discriminating based on race, religion and FAMILIAL STATUS! The landlord DOES have the right to ask for references..both personal and work and verify that you have the income to support the rent and expenses associated with living there.
.
If your daughter is in school til 6 pm every day and is fairly quiet as some kids are, let the landlords know! I once rented an apartment in a complex of mostly senior citizens. They didn't want to rent to M. at first because they were afraid I'd be up late and make too much noise. I told them I worked all day and went to bed at a decent hour, didn't throw parties and lived quietly. They rented M. the apartment and I loved it there with all the other quiet people. Be honest. If your daughter is active, you will be happier and more relaxed renting where there are other children. But if you two really live quietly, make that clear next time you apply for a rental.
i have a 4 year old and i wouldn't want to live below M. either! lol. no offense. but i can see where they are coming from. the "pitter patter of little feet" is a myth. it's earth-shaking lol. maybe try to find a ground floor place. stinks, but what can you do?
Ummm... This is not legal in any state that I know of. I'd call your housing authority. These things are often hard to prove, but it's considered discriminatory.
You need to call your local fair housing office.
Also, try your state's attorney general's office.
Landlords can not discriminate based on familial status.
And that is what has J. happened to you.
It's literally criminal.
