In Georgia, landlords are permitted to charge tenants "nonrefundable fees". Title 44, Chapter 7, Article 2 of the Georgia Code defines a "nonrefundable fee" as: any money or other consideration paid or given by a tenant to a landlord under the terms of a residential rental agreement which the parties agreed would not be refunded. The law goes on to state specifically that the term "Security Deposit" (which includes damage deposits, advance rent deposits and pet deposits) shall not include nonrefundable fees.
This law gives Georgia landlords the flexibility to charge nonrefundable pet fees to tenants that have pets. The nonrefundable pet fee is basically additional money (or other consideration) that goes to the landlord for allowing the pets. It compensates the landlord for the additional wear on their property and the additional hassles of managing a property with pets. (i.e. neighbor complaints, roommate complaints, maintenance personal not being able to enter the property because the tenant hasn't put the pet away, chasing down pets that run out of a property during routine visits, etc.)
Additionally, by charging a nonrefundable pet fee instead of a pet deposit, there is no argument at the end of the tenancy whether any of it should be refunded to the tenant. However, if the tenant's pet does any damage to the property beyond ordinary wear and tear, the landlord may still charge the tenant for the damage and use the security deposit and/or any other legal collection method to recover the damages.
Lastly, for the landlord who wants additional security when allowing pets, the nonrefundable pet fee can be used in conjunction with a larger security deposit. While the nonrefundable pet fee is, of course, nonrefundable; the security deposit must be refunded to the tenant if there is no damage to the property beyond ordinary wear and tear and there are no outstanding lease charges when a tenant leaves.
