One question that has been popping up recently is how pet limits apply to assistance animals. As I have written about before, pet limits in the form of breed and/or weight restrictions do not apply to assistance animals (i.e., you cannot deny a resident’s assistance animal because he is a German Shepherd or otherwise
As a fair housing attorney, I often field the question, “What can I do to avoid having a complaint filed against me?” Avoiding complaints seems like a pretty obvious and sensible goal, right? While the goal may be straightforward, the execution is often anything but. Dealing with the Fair Housing Act is inherently difficult due
Frequent readers of this blog know that the Fair Housing Act exists in large part to prohibit discrimination against individuals based on their physical appearance (race, gender, national origin, etc.). However, did you know that you cannot discriminate against assistance animals based on appearance either? A recent charge by the Department of Housing and Urban
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a report on Tuesday, September 5th that really struck me. The report revealed the findings of a pilot study on rental housing discrimination on the basis of mental disabilities. As most readers of this blog know, I devote a substantial amount of space discussing disability
As I have written about before, the rules regarding permissible inquiries in response to a Fair Housing Act accommodation request are complex and fraught with danger. Given this complexity, many housing providers are inclined to simply grant any accommodation request made by a resident with an apparent disability (such as a resident in a
A recent U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) case caught my eye earlier this week, and made me realize that there was still some confusion over the distinction between “service animals” and “emotional support animals.” To simplify matters, I generally advise my multifamily management and owner clients that, for purposes of the Fair
As landlords and property managers, you walk a thin line with regard to accommodation requests involving assistance animals. You obviously want to make sure that any tenant who needs an assistance animal is accommodated. At the same time, you need to require enough verification to weed out anyone who is trying to take advantage of
Under the Fair Housing Act, property owners and management companies are required to ensure that all tenants have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a property. Generally, this means that management must grant reasonable accommodation and modification requests where necessary to afford a tenant the full use of the property. But what is the
One common question from landlords and property managers is whether they are permitted to request supporting information from tenants who have made an accommodation request under the federal Fair Housing Act. The stakes for owners and property managers here are high—a single misstep can lead to a costly discrimination claim.
Thankfully, HUD—the Department of
Landlords and property managers often wonder whether they can deny a resident’s fair housing accommodation request for an assistance animal because the animal is on a “restricted breeds” list. The short answer is “no.” Or, perhaps more accurately, “probably not.”
The federal Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601 et seq., requires that properties make