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Can landlords require you to own a pet for a specific amount of time in order for it to qualify as an ESA? It’s not a problem for me, more of a curiosity, as I’ve seen it happen: someone wants an animal and states it’s their ESA, but the animal was just adopted the day before or not even adopted/bought yet. Seems like there would be something that would protect landlords in that way, but also more clarification for those that want to bring an animal in as an ESA.
No, that is not a requirement landlords can impose. An animal is considered an ESA if it is covered by an ESA letter from a licensed healthcare professional.
I have three cats and one small dog, yet all of my animals are licensed, trained, and covered as ESA and service animals. I have bipolar, depression, PTSD, anxiety, ADHD, Autism, and sleep apnea with insomnia. My animals provide the drive for me to keep going and stay sane. If my landlord has an issue with my furbabies they can speak to my lawyer, doctors, behavior therapist, and track record of prior mental lockups before being approved for my ESA’s. I have never harmed anyone but ya’ll are already stingy enough not working with low income folks, disabled folks, people on HUD, and other programs. Stop buying all the houses and maybe actually work and you’ll stop complaining.
I have a short haired german shepard, 3 years old and 60 pounds. I’ve got a license from the ADA with her name and photo as well as my name and various other information on it. I was diagnosed with PTSD, as well as severe manic depressive disorder and anxiety. My dog was trained in the P.A.C.K. program as well as the Freedom Service Dog Program. She is very friendly and non violent, she doesn’t chew on anything and she’s potty trained. And she doesn’t bark at other animals or other people. I’ve showed my landlord all of her paperwork. Even Vet records, and he won’t allow her on the property. Theres other people here that have cats and dogs, not ESA or ADA certified. And he doesn’t say anything to them about their pets. My landlord says that due to his insurance he cannot allow my dog because she is a german shepard. But there’s people here with pitt bulls! I even tried to draw up a non liable contract for my landlord for any aggression damages or assaults..I would be liable and responsible for anything to happen not him, which my dog is well behaved, and I need not worry about such things. And he said his attorneys and insurance still won’t allow her.. too much risk involved.
I’ve tried to exhaust every remedy for this situation and I can’t seem to get any help..
As a landlord, I resent this emotional support animal routine. There are plenty of rentals available that allow pets. I own both “pet friendly” and “no pet” rentals, and there are good reasons why some of my properties are designated pet free. Additionally, I used to have birds, but developed a severe hypersensitivity to parrot type birds several years ago. This is not just sneezing or watery eyes – this causes pulmonary fibrosis, which is permanent scarring of the lungs, and in the year it took to get a diagnosis, I went from being perfectly healthy to being unable to walk across the room from lack of oxygen. By the time I had a diagnosis, my oxygen levels were getting down into the mid 60% range, which is barely compatible with life. In fact, if people keep getting exposure to the antigen that causes hypersensitive pneumonitis, it eventually causes death. I had to find a new home for my bird, and despite thorough cleaning, painting and getting rid of some furniture, I still had to leave my house for 3 years before being able to go back without having symptoms again. I had to take steroids for six months after leaving my home before getting somewhat back to normal, although I will always have diminished lung capacity. This is a serious thing and yet as the rules are written, anyone with a bird could demand that I rent to them, and if I did that, I would literally be unable to go into that house again without triggering a life threatening medical condition. I think most people who get letters certifying that their pets are “emotional support” animals, do so merely so they can thumb their noses at pet policies – they can move into places where other people have chosen to live specifically because there are no pets allowed. They get to move in without paying pet deposits. They disrupt all the other tenants and sometimes put landlords, like myself, into an impossible position. People with pets should just find pet friendly rentals and stop looking for ways to get around the rules.
The fundamental problem with this view is that you’re saying people who have a mental health disability should be confined to certain types of housing because of their needs instead of being given equal access to all housing. That is why federal Fair Housing rules for emotional support animals exist. You also need a letter from a real licensed healthcare professional to say you have an ESA so there are safeguards in place. We are sympathetic to people with allergies and other sensitivities with animals, and we agree that everyone’s health and interests should be taken into consideration during the ESA accommodation process.
It’s not because of their needs that they are not accepted as a tenant. It’s because of their animal. Same goes for pet owners. It’s not discrimination when a non-disabled tenant brings an animal and gets turned down, so why is it discrimination when a disabled person who brings an animal is turned down? I used the term “animal”, instead of “pet” and “service animal”. Some people might say because it’s a service animal and not a pet, that it should be allowed. If anyone has an animal of any kind and they apply at a place with a no pets policy, they should be turned down if it’s for a good reason.
“it’s not discrimination when a non-disabled tenant brings an animal and gets turned down, so why is it discrimination when a disabled person who brings an animal is turned down?” This distinction is made under federal and state housing rules because a disabled person needs an assistance animal to help with their disability – they shouldn’t be penalized by having a more limited housing selection for having a disability related need for an assistance animal.
I also said “For me personally (as a future landlord and current resident of the same property), I have a no pet policy and if a disabled person with an animal comes by wanting to rent, I should be able to turn them down if it’s for a good reason (which I will state below). My disability is social anxiety due to sleep deprivation (regular, uniterrupted, good quality sleep of 6+ hours for at least 2 days in a row that is). It’s something I’m still fighting with even now. I’m trying to figure what’s causing me to get bad sleep and I’m eliminating one thing at a time. If I get too hot or too cold, eat too late, don’t do #2 before bed, and many more things, I will end up waking up in the middle of the night or just getting light sleep. If either of these things happen for more than 2 nights in a row at my current sleep battery level (as many days in a row of good sleep I could get), I will have social anxiety. When I say “sleep battery level”, I mean that every night in a row of good sleep I get, my ” battery” gets filled up. When I get good sleep for, at minimum, 2 nights in a row I can miss the third night of good sleep and still be ok to be around people the next day, though maybe not as easily as it was on the second day. If I miss another night in a row, then I will have social anxiety to the point where I can’t be outside anymore. I have never gone past getting 2 days in a row of good sleep so I don’t know for how long I can go without it after getting it for a longer period of time. Even if I could get good sleep for a week in a row and miss an occasional night doesn’t mean I should allow a disabled person to bring in their animal. I don’t want to worry about potentially missing sleep for any amount of days in a row and end up staying awake every night because of worry. Also, an animal making noise in the middle of the night can happen all the time instead of just once in a while, which is something I don’t need to say as I have a problem and do not want to miss any sleep at all. I will also not buy and use/wear things to reduce noise because I’m forced to. Though the law may not care about that and expect me to anyways, unless maybe those things make me uncomfortable (maybe) or cause problems with my disability. It wouldn’t be fair if I had to allow someone’s service animal while I have this problem. The best solution is for them to find a place that allows pets and their service animal would be welcome.”
I have currently been looking for housing, and I have an Emotional Support Animal. Which happens to be a 6 pound yorkie. I have inquired at a place that has a specific outline of a pet policy except dogs. I have also inquired about a rental that has a “No Pet” policy. Im completely in disbelief of the way I was rudely spoken to about my ESA, as well as No call back from the “No Pet” policy folks. There are Laws to protect people like myself who truly benefit from these animals. What would you say would be a good reason to be turned down for housing? It’s a shame to have to file complaints just because people don’t want to comply with federal laws.
Landlords have a few reasons where they can justifiably deny an ESA. For example, if they have evidence that the ESA would pose a safety or health hazard to other tenants. They cannot however just rely on a “no pets” policy to reject an ESA, since an ESA is not a pet but an assistance animal under federal rules.
I feel like as a landlord, you should be aware of the actual lack of “pet friendly” properties on the market in a lot of areas, as well as the amount of landlords that will rent a “pet friendly” unit to tenants that don’t even have pets at all, forcing pet owners to look even harder for a place to live. As a landlord, you reserve the right regardless to hold the tenant financially responsible for damages to the unit caused by their animal, service/ESA or not. Implementing a “no pet policy” because you had a previous tenant who didn’t take care of their pet(s) or whose pet(s) caused damage to your property isn’t really fair. The burden of previous tenants actions shouldn’t fall on future tenants. And for you to say you’re “tired of the routine” is discriminatory in itself. You’re basically saying that people with disabilities should be limited to what housing “accepts” their way off living instead of having an equal opportunity for all housing. The ADA and the FHA are associations that aid in protecting disabled individuals from landlords with toxic mindsets like this. If you aren’t prepared to reasonably accommodate your tenants and their way of life, then you really have no business renting properties.
Eat the rich. You own multiple rental units and are complaining about people having pets? Boo. Go find a different “job” then to make your money if you can’t figure out how to accommodate people giving you 2/3rds of their income because your a “property owner”
🙂
Eww.
What a sh**ty person you are. First of all, you’re damn well aware there are not “plenty” of rentals that allow pets. When someone checks “Pets allowed” on any search engine, upwards of 95% of all listings vanish.
The laws have loopholes for situations like you expressed, where the health of the landlord or other tenants can be hindered; so your issue is nonexistent. You also already rob people of a security deposit that you can deplete if the ESA causes any damage, which they generally do not.
You literally suffer nothing from an occupant having a pet. You just want to try and get away with renovating as little as possible, while also keeping your tenants’ money, after they move out.
I didn’t put anything on my application about my ESA dog (Ohio) because of some of the things I read it basically stated I could wait to tell them – that I have a right to see if I get apartment 1st & then tell them. Well that did not work – she said NO – thankfully me & my ex have shared parenting with our dog so she can stay with him – BUT!!! if I complain or file a complaint I risk losing my apartment. I took this apartment because it’s all I could afford.
This info is misleading. Besides the tiny criteria mentioned above…LANDLORDS CANNOT DENY YOU BECAUSE OF YOUR ESA. I mean anyone can do anything, but legally they cannot. Now if you claim to have an ESA and show no proof (which if you have an ESA you will already have the paperwork from your doctor if you did it correctly) then the landlord can evict you because they have no way of verifying that your not just trying to get around a no pet policy. I have an ESA. I was diagnosed with PTSD and it causes me to have horrible social anxiety. The first thing I did was notify my landlord by mail. I included a typed letter (I googled templates and used that), my ESA documentation, and a card to our groomer (she wasn’t our groomer yet at the time). I did this ultimately because we have a great relationship with our landlord and have always been good tenants and pay our rent early everything month and have been here for a few years…that’s why I suggest letting them know first. Then get your ESA. I have a domestic long haired cat and so I her butt to the groomers lol. Your landlord is worried about damages. They aren’t worried about you having a esa. They are worried about your esa tearing the dwelling up. There is such a stigma with ESAs because people abuse it just like every other thing that might be helpful to someone who actually needs it. So always have proof. Always. If after all that, they still deny you then you can report them and even take legal action.