Fair Housing Act is a law that prohibits any discrimination against any disabled person. Learn about your emotional support animals’ rights and their purpose.https://bit.ly/33eHM3i

1. WHAT IS THE FAIR HOUSING
ACT AND HOW DOES IT HELP
EMOTIONAL SUPPORT
ANIMALS?

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My ESA
DOCTOR
The Fair Housing Act or FHA is a federal law that
protects discrimination against tenants. So, if
you suffer from physical or mental challenges
that are preventing you from carrying out daily
life activities, then, you can keep your emotional
support animal even if the societies or condos
follows “no pets” policies.
What is the Fair Housing Act And What
Does it Include?
The FHA law limits landlords and property
managers to discriminate against tenants
based on disability, race, religion, sex, or
national origin. So, if you have a qualifying
medical condition to fit in the category of
disability, this law will benefit you in the
following ways.
As per this law, it is illegal to ignore your
request for a reasonable accommodation if
you need to enjoy a similar status in terms of
dwelling.
It will allow you to live in a society or a condo
even with “no pets” policies. But only after
you prove that you are entitled to this
exception.
Now that we have understood the importance
of FHA, the next step is understanding the
concept of “reasonable accommodation.
What is a Reasonable Accommodation
under the FHA?”
A reasonable accommodation is nothing but a
change in any service, rule, or policy that might
be helpful for a patient with disability to enjoy a
dwelling similar to others. No one can deny
anyone such an opportunity, and if somebody
refuses, they might be penalized under the law.

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Where we are
TODAY
However, there are some exceptions to this
law as well. One can deny the request to
provide a reasonable accommodation if it
poses an unnecessary financial or
administrative burden. It will also apply if
the landlord needs to make a significant
change in their housing.
Mostly this law waivers “no pet policies” as a
part of providing reasonable
accommodations to the ones with
disabilities. For instance, in a famous case of
Castellano v. Access Premier Realty, Inc., 181
F Supp. 3d 798, the court waived “no pet”
policy to allow a patient’s demand for
reasonable accommodation for his
emotional support cat.
Who is Protected Under FHA?
Under the Fair Housing Act of 1968, the
following types of disorders are protected
against any discrimination. The only criteria
that you must abide by are that the
condition should limit you from doing any
major life activities daily. The following are
the conditions that are protected under the
FHA.
Visual Impairments
Auditory Impairments
Mobility Impairments
AIDS, HIV
Epilepsy
Cognitive Disability
Past Substance Use Disorder
Traumatic Brain Injury
The list mentioned above will answer your
query for “who is not protected under the
FHA?”

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What Are The Categories of Housing Apartments Covered Under The FHA?
You can avail the perks of having an emotional support animal only for the following
housing categories.
Nursing Homes
Group Homes
Seasonal Facilities
Residential Facilities
Mobile Homes
Trailer Parks
Condominiums
But, unlike what you think, this law does not cover every type of dwelling. The following
are the types of apartments that are not covered under the FHA.
If your landlord occupies one of the units with the number of units being four or less
than that.
If you are trying to lease a single-family housing without a real estate broker.
No motels or hotels come under the FHA (But they are a part of public accommodations
under the Americans with Disabilities Act for Private Clubs).
What Type of Documents Do You Need to Rent a House?
If you think you can avail of all these perks without any proof or documentation. Well, then
you are highly mistaken. Under the FHA, a landlord can ask you for all the documents that
prove your disability. And that it is your right to ask for a reasonable accommodation for
your emotional support animal.

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For starters, you will need an emotional support animal letter or ESA letter signed by a
licensed mental health professional (LHMP) including psychologists, or psychiatrists, a
licensed social worker. You can also ask your family doctor to issue you an ESA letter. Just
make sure that all of this is printed on the official letterhead of the mental health
professional.
Other than that, you can also share your emotional support animal’s vaccination records
and behavior certificates. It will improve your chances of signing a lease agreement with
your landlord. In addition to that, you can also share your pet insurance records. This will
allow your landlord not to worry about any additional expenses. If, by any chance, your pet
causes any destruction in their apartment.
What Are Landlords Prohibited to Ask Under The FHA?
If you have an ESA, FHA makes sure that you are protected against any discrimination so
that landlords don’t refuse your demand for accommodation.
They cannot ask you to pay extra pet fees or deposits just because you have an
emotional support animal.
They can never ask about your specific disability.
They can never ask you to register your emotional support animal.
They cannot force you to go for specialized training for your ESA.
They can never refuse you any accommodation because their insurance does not cover
emotional support animals.
So, if you have any emotional support animal, you will be allowed to access the places of
public accommodation within your society besides your house.

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What to do if Your Landlord Still Refuses to Accept Your Request?
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), you can
file any of your complaints that come under the FHA with the HUD within one year of
that incident. If you need any more information, visit www.hud.gov/offices/fheo or call
1-800-669- 9777. You can also file a complaint with the Civil Rights Division of the
Justice Department.
What is the Fair Housing Act For Emotional Support Animals?- The Summary
If you are looking for reasonable accommodation for living with your emotional
support animal, make sure you have the following-
A qualified physical or mental health disability
ESA letter
If you have these, then you will be protected under FHA for availing the perks of
reasonable accommodation along with no more discriminations based on your
disabilities.
Hopefully, this article helped you solve all your search queries like “ what is the Fair
Housing Act?”, “What is the purpose of the Fair Housing Act?”, or “What is a reasonable
accommodation under the Fair Housing Act?” If not, write to us in the comments
section below, we will answer all your FHA related queries as soon as possible.
Our mission is to help patients alleviate suffering,
recover from their mental illnesses, and maximize
the therapeutic benefits of support animals. We
believe that animal therapy works better than
pharmaceuticals when it comes to psychological
disorders, stress, and other mental health issues.