Latest Update: January 2020 to reflect updated HUD Guidance on Emotional Support Animals
The Fair Housing Act (FHA) is a federal law that prohibits discrimination against tenants with disabilities. Under the FHA, a disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities. Many tenants with a mental illness or emotional distress issues have Emotional Support Animals (ESAs) that provide relief from the symptoms of their disability. Under the FHA, landlords must reasonably accommodate tenants with valid ESAs, even if the building has a no-pets policy or other restrictions on pets.
If you are considering qualifying for an ESA or already have an ESA, this article is about your rights as a tenant under the Fair Housing Act. An animal companion qualifies as an ESA through a recommendation letter provided by a licensed health care professional. If you are having trouble finding a therapist and are looking to connect with a licensed professional familiar with ESAs online, you can start the questionnaire in the link below. 
Why Do Emotional Support Animals Get Special Treatment?
Emotional support animals are not considered pets since they provide therapeutic benefits to their owners.
The purpose of FHA rules when it comes to ESAs is to allow people with mental and emotional disabilities to be accompanied by their ESAs in order to have equal opportunity to enjoy and use a dwelling. An Emotional Support Animal can be used to alleviate the symptoms of a mental illness, such as severe anxiety, depression or phobias and many people have found tremendous therapeutic benefits from the companionship of an ESA.
The FHA ensures that landlords cannot discriminate against tenants who have an ESA that helps them cope with their mental illness. Even if a tenant lives in a building with a “no pets” policy, the landlord must make a “reasonable accommodation” to allow for Emotional Support Animals.
ESAs are not considered normal pets under the FHA, which is why policies pertaining to pets do not apply to ESAs. That means a landlord is not permitted to charge fees or deposits in connection with an ESA, even though fees and deposits might be charged for normal pets. The landlord also cannot impose breed and weight restrictions on ESAs, even though they may apply to normal pets.
What Documents are Required for an Emotional Support Animal?
Under the Fair Housing Act, a landlord has the right to ask for proper documentation for your Emotional Support Animal. This document comes in the form of an ESA letter from a licensed health care professional (LHCP). Licensed health care professionals who can write an ESA letter can include the following:
- Licensed therapists
- Licensed counselors
- Social workers
- Psychologists/ Psychiatrists
- Nurses and Nurse Practitioners
- Physicians and Physician Assistants
The U.S. Department of Housing (HUD) has given guidance that as best practice, the ESA letter should be on the LHCP’s letterhead, signed and dated by the LHCP, and contain the LHCP’s contact and license information. The ESA letter should state that the tenant has a mental or emotional impairment and that the tenant needs their ESA because it alleviates a symptom or effect of the impairment. ESA Doctors can help connect you to a health care professional that is licensed to assist you in your state and knowledgeable about ESAs.
What Landlords Cannot Ask You for Under the FHA
There are limitations on what a landlord can ask about you and your emotional support animal.
When it comes to having an ESA, there are very specific rules and regulations under the FHA to protect your rights and privacy. Landlords:
- Cannot make you pay any extra rent, deposit or fee for having an ESA
- Cannot ask you for extensive details about your disability
- Cannot make you register your emotional support animal (there is no such thing as an “official registry” for ESAs)
- Cannot request a “certification” for your emotional support animal (the only valid way to qualify an ESA is with an ESA letter)
- Cannot require the animal to have specific training relating to a disability
Sometimes landlords will make additional demands on tenants after being presented with an ESA letter and request for accommodation. Landlords and housing providers need to proceed carefully with additional demands, as HUD guidance prohibits making certain requests. For example, landlords may not require a health care professional to use a specific form, provide notarized statements, make statements under penalty of perjury, or provide a tenant’s diagnosis or other detailed information about a person’s physical or mental impairments.
This point is especially important: in no circumstance can a housing provider require disclosure of details about the diagnosis or severity of the tenant’s disability, request medical records or require a medical examination.
Some tenants will voluntarily choose to submit additional forms and addendums regarding ESAs from their landlords, especially if the information being requested is reasonable and within the scope of what is permissible for landlords to ask about. The licensed professionals that work with ESA Doctors can assist you if your landlord requires such extra documents.
When Can a Landlord Deny an ESA Under the Fair Housing Act?
A landlord can deny an ESA accommodation request in certain limited circumstances
Even though tenants with ESAs are generally protected by the Fair Housing Act, there are a few limited circumstances where the rules do not apply or where a landlord can deny an ESA. The Fair Housing Act does not apply to:
- Owner occupied buildings with no more than four units and
- Single-family homes sold or rented by the owner without the use of an agent
In addition, landlords can deny an ESA if the ESA poses a direct threat to the health and safety of others or would cause substantial property damage. It is important to note that landlords must consider accommodation requests for ESAs on an individual basis. That means that for example a landlord cannot deny your ESA solely because it is a certain breed and they make certain assumptions about that breed being dangerous. Remember, categorical breed restrictions are not allowed when it comes to ESAs.
What If the Landlord Refuses to Comply?
Unfortunately, some landlords are very averse to ESAs or just uninformed about what the rules are and will put up unreasonable roadblocks to prevent tenants from living with their ESAs. If your landlord is ignoring your ESA request, you should be aware that HUD has issued guidance that housing providers should make a determination regarding ESA accommodations promptly, generally within 10 days of receiving an ESA letter from a tenant.
Landlords also have to engage in good-faith dialogue with a tenant making an ESA request in an “interactive process.” Before denying an ESA request for valid reasons, landlords have to allow tenants reasonable opportunity to provide information confirming the tenant’s disability or disability-related need for an ESA.
If you believe your landlord is denying accommodation of your ESA without proper justification, these are some of your options:
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- Make sure the landlord/owner of the property is aware of the Fair Housing Act rules and the penalties that may ensue if they fail to comply. Many landlords are often just unaware of the laws that cover them and it is always helpful to engage in a constructive dialogue with the landlord before taking more serious action.
- As a last resort, you can report and file an official complaint against the property manager/owner with the Department of Housing’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity.
The Department of Housing will often bring charges against landlords who fail to fulfill their obligations under the Fair Housing Act. Preventing a tenant from living with their ESA without valid justification can be considered discrimination and a violation of the FHA. The tenant in such a situation would have legal rights against the landlord for violating federal law.
Do I need a Service Animal or Emotional Support Animal?
It is important to understand the difference between Emotional Support Animals and Service Animals. Service Animals are trained to perform specific tasks for an owner, such as a guide dog for the blind. Service Animals have different rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and are allowed in public areas.
On the other hand, ESAs do not have special training and have more limited accommodation rights. The FHA allows tenants to live in their homes with their ESAs, but does not give the right for an ESA to be in other public places. For example, ESAs do not have an automatic right to be in restaurants, grocery stores or hotels (although many hotels will have their own policies that make accommodation for ESAs).
Service Dogs are dogs that are highly trained to do a specific task for the disabled person. The service can be anything from helping the person navigate through public places or alerting them to an oncoming seizure or low blood sugar.
Emotional Support Animals (ESA) do not need any specialized training and provide comfort and support to their owners. People may use all sorts of animals to give them the emotional support they need to live a fulfilling life. An Emotional Support Animal can be a dog, cat, bird, rabbit, hamster, gerbil, other rodent, fish, or turtle.
Dogs and cats are the most common ESAs, but other animals are allowed as well. An ESA can be any small, domesticated animal that is traditionally kept in the home for pleasure. It is also not unusual for tenants to have more than one ESA that helps them cope with their disability – that is permitted if their ESA letter covers multiple ESAs.
Fair Housing Act and Emotional Support Animals
Remember that you have rights as a tenant with an ESA under the Fair Housing Act.
It is important to understand your rights and not allow a landlord or property manager to unjustly refuse your ESA. Remember that you have rights as a tenant with an ESA under the Fair Housing Act.
If you do not currently have an ESA but are interested in seeing if you qualify for one, the first step is to seek the help of a health care professional. ESA Doctors connects clients to real licensed health care professionals that can write ESA recommendation letters for qualified clients.
If you are interested in seeing if you qualify for an emotional support animal and do not currently have a therapist, fill out the questionnaire in the link below to get started.
See if you qualify for an ESA letter below.
Get the Love and Support you Deserve!
[…] FHA or Fair Housing Act allows you to live with your emotional support cat, even in “no-pets” apartments and […]
Can a landlord demand you pay for replacing capit in a unit when you leave, if you have a documented ESA?
As well as making you sign documents that say you’ll pay for the new capit?
Every ESA handler is responsible for their ESA and any damages caused by the animal.
I am a real estate agent who has a customer interested in living in a condo complex that has a one per policy. She has two small dogs and suffers terribly from depression and is under a doctors care. Her dogs are the only family she really has. Can you tell me if the complex’s board can refuse her to live there with two emotional support animals? I have spoke. To a representative for the board who is suggesting she find a place that allows two dogs. Unfortunately this is the only complex she can afford.
A building’s normal policies regarding pets do not apply to ESAs. ESAs are not considered pets for purposes of Fair Housing rules. Multiple ESAs are quite common, and it is up to the tenant’s health care provider to determine if more than one ESA would be appropriate. If the tenant has proper documentation to cover both of their dogs, the housing provider should reasonably accommodate all of their ESAs.
No, emotional support animals are exempt from weight restrictions.
I just received my ESA Documents for my Doctor & my Hud Assistant Home. It states pretty much what alot of individuals comments are about the weight and breed. Of course, I will not be getting a breed that is dangerous or ENORMOUSLY huge. However, a ESA Best Friend I’ve been praying and researching/ looking for is over 20 pounds. I looked @ the Laws & no way can be denied because of their weight.
I truly hope this will not be an issue and just cannot sign the documents agreement .
Most of the ESA will be at least 50 pounds.
I really love my Supervisor and I’ve prayed alot there is no conflict.
Under Fair Housing rules, landlords are not permitted to deny an ESA solely because it is a certain weight or breed.
I have a documented disability. I also have an ESA: My children and I have been displaced and seeking shelter. The Salvation Army denied my request for temporary housing at their shelter because I have an ESA. I was told I my children could stay at the shelter but my ESA could NOT….. I advised the ESA is part of my medical treatment. I further explained , advising me that “ I could stay but not my ESA, is equivalent to advising a paralyzed- wheelchair bound person “ you can stay but you can not bring your wheelchair into the building. My children, my ESA and I were forced to sleep in the car. What can I do in this situation?
I live in a Rent Control Building. I came from an emotionally abusive relationship. The Contract we had to sign is that we can’t have ESA dog over 50 LBs or Cats. Can they put those restrictions? I want to get a Feline. My neighbor has a puppy that will get to be around 100lbs.
If you have a valid ESA the landlord is not permitted to impose categorical weight or breed restrictions.
Can a apartment demand the esa wear gear my friend got a leash that states its a esa but the apartment wants a vest. It’s a young dog and will need about 4 vests if it wears them rn till it’s fully grown
ESAs are not required to wear vests or have special cards or tags associated with them. Your apartment does not have any backing under the Fair Housing Act to require an ESA to wear special “gear”. Some ESA owners however will voluntarily obtain these items for their ESA so there is no confusion about what their animal is in a particular housing complex or on a flight.
We applied to a waiting list at a apartment and showed our Esa letter from my disabled sons doctor and were told they have weight restrictions. Is this legal under FHA
I have a tenant that moved in a house and with 1 month after moving in got 2 dogs claiming to be Emotional Support Animals. I only found out about the animals after doing an Insp. Then the wife didn’t tell me at the time that they were Emotional Support Animals, the husband unformed me the next day . I do not know what to do, I feel as I have been deceived and do not like it for my owner.
We sympathize with your situation. We always encourage ESA owners to be upfront about their ESAs and submit their requests for reasonable accommodation as soon as possible. ESA owners have the right to be accompanied by their ESA under federal law and it is not necessary to hide the ball from landlords, even though we understand that owners are very fearful about having their ESAs taken away from them.
I know the ESA exempts a pet fee and pet rent, does it exempt a refundable pet deposit?
Emotional support animals are exempt from refundable pet deposits.
I have a 2 yr old Bullmastiff that is registered emotional support dog. I also have medical documentation from my mental health psychologist as well. I was recently turned down after being told that I could move into a low income apartment high rise. The person who rejected my admission said that the reason is because of health and safety of the other tenants. This woman never met my dog and he is a docile and extremely friendly dog to everyone including other dogs and cats. I recently submitted a request for an informal hearing with the Niagara Falls Housing Authority to dispute their decision. Bullmastiff dogs are at home in apartments, condos, homes etc.. because they don’t require much activity. I am waiting for a hearing date but I really need to know everything I can before I meet with the people of the Housing Authority. It’s a federal funded housing facility. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Again, I was told that I had the proper paperwork regarding my dog’s ESA registration. From what I was told by one of the Niagara Falls Housing Authority caseworkers, that my dog will cause a problem with the other residents who complain about everything and it’s easier to just reject my application. Please help and thank you.
All that is required is an ESA letter from a licensed mental health professional. You did the right thing by contacting your local Fair Housing Authority. Good luck!
We are renting and have 2 dogs and 1 esa dog. For the 2 pets we have we paid the pet deposit and everything. Our problem is our neighbor has called the owner of the home we rent and told them our ESA dog is vicious and dangerous. We rent from a property manager, so then our property manager called us to let us know the neighbor called the owner. Now our property manager wants to come meet our esa, which is fine but also stressful. The reason our neighbor has said this is because our esa will bark at his 2 small dogs. Our boy is a german shepherd, he has never jumped the fence, never gotten out without us, never bit anyone or tried to. Our neighbor has made comments about his breed and how they are not good to have. Anyway, my question would be can the homeowner do anything to us?? We go through a reality company and have submitted our boys esa paperwork.
1st of all, take a deep breath of relief, bc you’ve got the law on your side. Neighbors can be a huge pain in the rear. However they are absolutely powerless to do anything to get rid of you or your Esa animal. I recommend checking out the Ada website and or checking out fair housing acts for service dogs and or requiring said pet deposit. so I wouldn’t worry too much just get that letter stating that you need to have either emotional support animal or service dog I do recommend service dog because it gives you so many more rights were as emotional support does not once you have that letter take that to your landlord along with a friend out copy of the Americans with Disabilities Act that’s specifically shows service dogs and tenants. After that if they refuse slap a lawsuit on them because they will be breaking the law should they evict you!
We would clarify that the qualifications for ESAs and service animals are very different, and you need a genuine need for either of them, i.e., a disability that has been confirmed by health professional. You cannot simply obtain a letter for an ESA online (at least not from a reputable provider) – you must be assessed by a licensed mental health professional licensed in your state and be given a recommendation by them. Service dogs are also required to be trained for specific tasks that help a person with a disability, whereas an ESA does not need any special training.
We live in an apartment complex that has two “esa apartments” but we don’t live in either of the two and want to get an esa animal but are refused because we are not in “esa” apartment. Is it legal for them to deny us an esa animal because we can’t get into the esa apartments due to waitlist?
Landlords must accommodate all valid requests for ESAs. It is very unusual for a landlord to have specifically assigned “ESA apartments”. A landlord can only deny an ESA in very limited circumstances, such as if the ESA poses a threat to the health and safety of others, or if the ESA accommodation would create an undue financial burden. The purpose of the ESA rules under the Fair Housing Act is to ensure that landlords grant reasonable accommodation to tenants with ESAs, even if there are conflicting building rules regarding pets.
I’m in a panic right now because I’m scared my unit will try to evict us. My husband has an ESA letter from his psychiatrist (just renewed) and we live in a no pets apartment. When we moved in, our pet addendum we signed states that our 1 dog is allowed but no other animals. However, we decided to get another ESA because her demeanor gives benefits that are different than our first ESA. Are we allowed to have our second ESA even though the pet addendum says only one animal is allowed? We didn’t think that they could legally restrict us from another ESA because they’re not just “pets”. We’re scared they’re going to try to evict us. What are our rights?
Sorry to hear about these issues. First, we are not lawyers and cannot advise on particular legal situations. Under the Fair Housing Act, landlords must respect valid ESAs that are recommended by licensed mental health professionals. Policies that apply to normal pets, including limitations on numbers of pets, do not apply to emotional support animals.
Hi!
Would you be able to tell me where you’re getting your information regarding whether ESAs are exempt from pet deposits? I’ve read The Housing & Urban-Rural Recovery Act of 1983, the only law I’m aware of that mentions deposits, and it only applies to federally assisted
housing for the elderly or persons with disabilities. There don’t seem to be any court cases that protect Emotional Support animals from landlords requiring deposits. Would you be able to direct me to which specific law or act that specifies ESAs as being deposit exempt? Thank you!
That requirement can be found in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s FHEO Notice on Emotional Support Animals.
[…] the Federal Housing Act, a disability is defined […]
Can the company that owns the housing enforce a weight limit?
Fair Housing states that weight cannot be a reason to deny an ESA.
I have 3 ESA’s in my apartment. My apartment staff gave me zero issues. My boyfriend is going to be moving in with me in future months to come with his dog. Can they deny his ESA? i am worried.
If your boyfriend’s ESA is covered by a valid ESA letter and he is a tenant in the apartment, then the landlord will need to respect his ESA under Fair Housing Act rules. The apartment must however be able to comfortably and safely accommodate all of the ESAs in the space.
Can an ESA be denied if they are is a Breed Specific Ban law in place.