I posted this up thread to someone who said you should find pet friendly housing unless you’re a criminal or evictions: In SF the difference between a pet friendly 1BR and not pet friendly 1BR apt can be $800/month. If you’re already struggling to afford $2300/mo, telling people to just pony up for $3100/mo luxury apts seems out of touch with reality. The housing market is tight again and landlords increasingly choose not to allow any pets unless you pay that much for the privilege. Not to mention finding roommates or affording the security/deposit/first month for a 2BR apt that you later plan to split might be prohibitively expensive upfront, though cheaper long-term than a studio or 1BR. I chose to rent at $900/mo above my prior situation w roommates so I could bring my cat to live with me, but I was incredibly privileged to do so. I partly financed it because I had family willing to watch my cat so I could save for 18 months ahead of hand. That choice still comes at the expense of maximally funding my savings/retirement accounts and was possible because I had family support. Buying a house here easily costs 1.5 mil+.

Not true in most real estate/housing markets probably, but I can absolutely imagine a situation where you either have to give up your pet, turn down a job/career move to live in a cheaper area with your pet, or pay an extra ~10k a year to have a pet. I don’t think it’s fair to ask ppl to anticipate that kind of choice before adopting (doing so would likely leave many pets unhomed who are otherwise very happy). And she’s found a loving home for her cat with a trusted friend.

ETA re “unless you’re a criminal”: since I work in a VA hospital and children’s hospital, I have FBI fingerprinting/background check, clean credit/never evicted, a government-backed income that is more bulletproof than most, and am mostly just sleeping if/when I’m home- presumably desirable qualities for landlords. I feel fine negotiating. Still hard to find pet friendly spots