What to Know About Renting to Tenants with Service Animals

Key Takeaways

• Service animals are not pets and must be accommodated. No-pet policies, pet fees, breed limits, and weight restrictions do not apply.
• Verification is allowed, but only within legal boundaries. You may confirm the need and function of a service animal, but not ask about the disability or require training proof.
• Accommodation must remain reasonable. Service animals must be controlled and non-disruptive, and tenants can be held responsible for damage or safety issues.

Landlords are free to choose if they want to rent their property to pet owners or not. They can decide to ban pets from their rental or require additional financial commitments from tenants with pets.

Some of the reasons why some landlords don’t want pets in their rental property include the risk of property damage, noise complaints, bad odors, and potential liability issues.

Based on this, landlords can design their rental’s pet policy as they see fit. But these policies cannot be applied to service animals , because they are not considered pets.

This article by Legacy Realty and Management explains what landlords need to know when renting to tenants with service animals.

What Is a Service Animal?

These are animals trained to help individuals with disabilities perform specific tasks. Service animals are not pets but working animals for individuals with physical, sensory, psychiatric, or intellectual impairments. They are allowed to enter places where access to animals is usually prohibited.

Depending on the needs of their owner, these animals are trained to do specific work for different disabilities.

Service animals are different from pets. Unlike pets, which are owned for companionship and pleasure (and therefore subject to a landlord’s pet policies), service animals are trained to perform tasks directly related to the individual’s disability. They are covered by housing laws and disability rights and not subject to pet fees or extra fees.

Renting to Tenants With Service Animals

Even if a landlord prohibits pets in their rental property, they must make reasonable accommodations if a renter with a service animal asks for it. Reasonable accommodation is when a landlord modifies their rental property’s rules, policies, or services to rent to tenants whom they would normally not rent to.

The Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) have a list of criteria for individuals who may qualify for reasonable accommodations:

• They must have a physical or mental impairment that significantly limits one major life activity.
• They must have a history of such impairments.
• They must be regarded as having such impairments.

Since service animals are allowed to go anywhere humans can go, their presence can have a marked impact on your rental property. This is why landlords must understand the rules guiding their relationship with tenants with service animals. The following are some of the things you can or cannot do when renting to these types of tenants.

Guidelines for Renting to Tenants With Service Animals

If a potential renter requests reasonable accommodations, the landlord can:

• Ask if the animal is required for a disability, and what tasks the service animal is trained to perform.
• Require a written confirmation from the tenant’s healthcare provider, confirming that they are disabled.
• Require the tenant’s healthcare provider to confirm that the tenant requires a service animal.
• Can request copies of the animal’s health records as proof that it is vaccinated, parasite-free, and healthy.

On the other hand, landlords are not allowed to ask the following:

• The nature of the tenant's disability or require their medical records.
• Proof of the animal’s training, like specific training certificates, unless the law permits it.
• When asking for proof of the animal's health, they are limited to asking for only those records required for public health.

All documentation presented during the tenant screening process must be handled with utmost confidentiality by the landlord. To be a legally compliant landlord , you cannot impose the following terms on tenants with service animals:

• Since a service animal is an essential aid, landlords cannot require a pet deposit or charge the tenant a pet fee.
• Landlords may not impose weight limits or breed restrictions on tenants with service animals.
• Service animals may go anywhere in the property that humans are allowed to go without restrictions.

This does not mean landlords cannot impose conditions on tenants with service animals. Even though the law strives to ensure access to adequate housing for tenants with disabilities, it recognizes the need to preserve landlords’ rights and protect their property.

Landlord’s Rules and Guidelines for Tenants With Service Animals

Landlords are only required to grant reasonable accommodations. This means that the accommodations granted to the tenant must not impose undue financial, rental safety , or administrative burdens on the landlord, their property, or other tenants.

Landlords can impose limits on what tenants with service animals can do in their rental property. As a precondition for renting to the tenant, the animal must be housebroken, under control, and not pose a threat to other tenants or damage the landlord’s property.

Here are some of the conditions that landlords can legitimately impose on tenants with service animals:

• Limited exceptions to noise disturbance. Landlords can expect service animals to make reasonable noise, but nuisance behavior such as excessive barking is prohibited
• The owner must keep their animal under control at all times, as well as clean up after the animal
• If the service animal causes any form of damage to the landlord’s property, the landlord can charge the tenant for the damage.
• If the animal is a threat to the safety of others, the landlord has legal grounds for eviction.
• Before taking legal action against the tenant, the landlord can write warning letters. This is important because it helps to document the issues.
• If the tenant fails to comply and the problems continue, the landlord may evict the tenant after getting legal counsel.

Final Thoughts

As a landlord, you cannot legally avoid renting to tenants with disabilities because they have a service animal. What you can do, however, is ensure that the interests of all parties are protected by adhering strictly to the law when renting to tenants with service animals.

If you’re unsure about adhering to state laws, partnering with an expert property management company like Legacy Realty and Management is a surefire way to ensure your rental property is safe and protected.