Why must associations permit some residents to have dogs where none are permitted by the association’s governing documents? Or large dogs where only small dogs are permitted? The answer is that the Fair Housing Acts (both state and federal) require “reasonable accommodations” in policies and procedures for the benefit of handicapped residents who request them, so they have an equal opportunity to enjoy use of the dwelling.
Residents may claim that the dog is an “assistive” animal, or a “service” animal, or that the dog is necessary for health and medical reasons. The easy cases in this area, for boards and managers, are the obvious ones: “seeing eye” trained dogs for blind persons, or “signal” dogs for deaf persons.
The not-so-easy situations are those where (1) residents have ill-defined or non-specific illnesses with less obvious symptoms, or (2) the dogs have ill-defined uses or unstated training. Typical requests include residents asking to have a dog because of depression or anxiety, basically for “emotional support.”
You can never discount the latter requests or ignore them or simply deny them. You risk a Fair Housing complaint. But, what can the association board do to show that it followed a procedure before deciding whether to grant a waiver or accommodation?
First, it is permissible and wise to require the resident to provide proof of the claimed handicap/ illness from a physician. Second, it is permissible and wise to require the resident to provide evidence of the dog’s training and/or to have the physician state the dog/pet is necessary for the resident’s handicap/illness. As stated in an administrative law HUD case (HUD v. Blue Meadows Limited Partnership, HUDALJ 10-99-0200-8, 2000), involving a landlord and tenant, even a request for a hearing dog may not be a reasonable or necessary accommodation under all the circumstances. A dog’s utility to a resident could be found by a jury to be as a simple household pet, and it is within the province of the landlord (or association) to make that determination as well.
We recommend that you seek the advice of an attorney or other Fair Housing law expert when you receive a request for approval of a service animal or for any other type of accommodation. Acting precipitously in denying the request could result in costly fines and litigation. FBN
By James Hazlewood
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