Introduction to the Fair Housing Act
The Fair Housing Act protects people from discrimination when they are renting or buying a home, getting a mortgage, seeking housing assistance, or engaging in other housing-related activities. Additional protections apply to federally-assisted housing.
The Fair Housing Act covers most housing. In very limited circumstances, the Act exempts owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units, single-family houses sold or rented by the owner without the use of an agent, and housing operated by religious organizations and private clubs that limit occupancy to members.
The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing because of:
Race
Color
National Origin
Religion
Sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation)
Familial Status
Disability
What the Fair Housing Act says about ESAs
The Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act protect the right of people with disabilities to keep emotional support animals, even when a landlord's policy explicitly prohibits pets. Because emotional support and service animals are not "pets," but rather are considered to be more like assistive aids such as wheelchairs, the law will generally require the landlord to make an exception to its "no pet" policy so that a tenant with a disability can fully use and enjoy his or her dwelling. In most housing complexes, so long as the tenant has a letter or prescription from an appropriate professional, such as a therapist or physician, and meets the definition of a person with a disability, he or she is entitled to a reasonable accommodation that would allow an emotional support animal in the apartment.
What is required
Renters must first have two questions answered affirmatively:
"Does the individual making the ESA request have a diagnosed disability?"
"If so, does the individual have a disability-related need for the emotional support animal?"
An official diagnoses of a DSM recognized disability by a licensed medical professional.
Proof of said mental/psychiatric disability and must be presented to the landlord.
A request needs to be made in writing to the landlord, manager or other appropriate authority. The request should state that the tenant has a disability and explain how the requested accommodation will be helpful.
The tenant needs to include a note or letter of prescription from his or her service provider, such as a doctor or therapist, verifying the need for the support animal.
Assistance Animals are considered to be auxiliary aids and are exempt from the pet policy and from the refundable pet deposit.
Note that the tenant need not disclose the details of the disability, nor provide a detailed medical history. Although the landlord is entitled to ask for supporting materials which document the need for an emotional support animal, federal law does not require the tenant to provide proof of training or certification of the animal.
Legal denial of housing
In assessing a tenant's request for emotional support animal as a reasonable accommodation, the landlord is entitled to consider the administrative, financial, or programmatic repercussions of allowing an animal onto the premises, including the potential disturbance to other tenants.
The property owner can prove the ESA causes them financial distress.
The ESA is too large for the property (example: a horse in a small apartment)
If the property is owner occupied.
If the housing is connected to a religious group or club.
If the property is for sale or rent by owner only.
If the animal causes/displays notable disturbances, destruction, or aggression.
If the emotional assistance animal is particularly disruptive, or the tenant fails to take proper measures to ensure that the animal does not bother other tenants, the landlord may be justified in denying the accommodation or ultimately filing for an eviction. One example: the court found that a federally assisted housing complex did not violate the Fair Housing Act by evicting a resident with mental illness for failure to walk his dog in designated areas and to use a pooper-scooper (Woodside Village v. Hertzmark).
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