

Landlords cannot reject a service dog solely because they merely perceive it as dangerous or a health risk to others without evidence. The Fair Housing Act exempts owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units and single-family houses sold or rented by the owner without an agent. Some smaller landlords are also exempt from Fair Housing requirements. For example, if the landlord has determined that the tenant’s service dog poses a health or safety risk to others, they may properly deny accommodation if the risks can’t be mitigated. Landlords can reject a tenant’s request to live with their service dog if they have a valid exemption. The right to live with your service dog is not absolute. When can a landlord reject a service dog? Emotional support animals, on the other hand, do not undergo any specialized training and assist with mental health disabilities just by being present in their owner’s life. Under federal Fair Housing rules, service dogs and emotional support animals are not considered pets and are thus not subject to rules that apply to normal pets.Ī major difference between an emotional support animal and a service dog is that service dogs must be individually trained to perform a task or job relating to the handler’s disability. Housing providers must accommodate assistance animals unless they have a valid exemption, even if their building has a policy that bans all pets.

Exemption from breed or weight restrictions.

Service dog owners have the following rights: If you have a mental or physical disability that requires you to have either a service dog or an emotional support animal, you are protected from discrimination under the federal Fair Housing Act. There are two types of assistance animals with special housing rights: service dogs and emotional support animals. Laws that Protect Assistance Animals in No Pet Housing In this article, we’ll explore what these exceptions are and what rights you have as a service dog owner in residential housing. Housing providers can only deny a tenant’s request to live with their service dog in limited circumstances. These advantages come with no downside policies imposing breed and weight restrictions are based on myths and don't improve resident safety or increase property values.Under the Fair Housing Act, housing providers such as landlords, HOAs, co-ops, and condos must reasonably accommodate service dogs. That means fewer vacancies and lower administrative costs. And those great tenants stay longer, keeping turnover costs low. And welcoming all pets is good for landlords too when landlords accept all cats and dogs, their number of qualified rental applicants dramatically increases, giving them more options for finding great tenants. Rental housing that welcomes all cats and dogs, regardless of breed or size, will save hundreds of thousands of lives and ensure that no family ever has to choose between their pet and their home. That’s not "pet-friendly" at all! Welcoming all pets is good for business no dogs over 25 lbs.) and breed restrictions, effectively excluding most of the nation’s pets.

Why the paradox? Because "pet-friendly" rental housing usually includes weight limits (e.g. This is despite rental housing industry claims that up to 78 percent of apartment buildings accept pets. In fact, problems finding and keeping rental housing lead to the surrender of half a million pets to shelters each year, many of whom aren’t lucky enough to find new homes. Pets are a part of every community and live in two-thirds of American homes, yet renters often have trouble finding housing that welcomes them. Did you know that 72 percent of renters have pets, yet problems finding and keeping rental housing is a leading reason dogs and cats wind up in shelters? It doesn’t have to be that way!
