The issue of emotional support animals in pet-restricted communities is never-ending. Their presence seems to have multiplied by the influx of individuals relocating to Florida. What was considered a “family pet” in the State of origin, suddenly became an emotional support animal in pet-restricted Florida communities. Understandably, individuals with family pets, now being represented as […]
Emotional Support Animals Must Obey a Co-op’s House Rules (NY)
Q: We live in a small, no-pets Westchester County co-op. Our upstairs neighbors were recently allowed to acquire an emotional support dog. The dog runs back and forth for 30 minutes at a time, and it frequently scratches a bedroom rug, waking us up throughout the night. We have shared our concerns with the neighbors, […]
Co-Op and Condo Boards Face Challenges Accommodating Emotional Support Animals (NY)
The demand for emotional support animals (ESAs) can present challenges for co-op and condo boards, particularly in buildings with strict no-pet policies. The key to addressing ESA requests lies in recognizing the distinction between an ESA and a pet. Unlike pets, ESAs serve as therapeutic companions for individuals with disabilities and are protected under the […]
National Puppy Day: Exploring Assistance Animal Laws in Community Associations
This Saturday, March 23 is National Puppy Day, where dog owners and lovers come together over their shared appreciation for our four-legged companions. National Puppy Day is meant to raise awareness of the number of dogs that need to be rescued each year and help prospective pet owners consider adoption. Community association residents should know […]
New Jersey Supreme Court Affirms Condominium’s Ability to Limit Alleged “Emotional Support Animals,” Clarifying the Process To Be Used For ESA Accommodations
On Wednesday, March 13th, New Jersey’s Supreme Court released its long-awaited decision in the Players Place II Condominium Association v. K.P. case. In 2018, a resident claiming to be disabled for New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”) adopted a dog that would ultimately weigh almost 65 lbs. despite Players Place II’s rule prohibiting dogs weighing […]
How Should Florida Community Associations Answer Residents’ Requests for Emotional Support Animals?
A right to an emotional support animal has been a heavily discussed topic for years, especially for certain extreme requests involving the use of an exotic animal for emotional support purposes, or when there is a claim that the emotional support animal needs its own emotional support animal, in a relatively clear attempt to circumvent […]
Resident Permitted to Keep Dog as an “Emotional Support Animal” (ON)
In the case of MTCC 584 v. Kakish, the condominium corporation’s Declaration and Rules contained provisions prohibiting pets in the units. One of the residents had a dog. She provided three letters from her doctor, setting out her need for the dog. She also provided a further letter from her treating psychiatrist. The letters stated […]
HOA Homefront: Reader wants to know, ‘Is my dog allowed?’ (CA)
Q: I am hoping you could help me with my HOA that’s trying to remove my daughter’s support dog because of its weight and breed. They are threatening to come and have her removed because she got too big. Can they do this? It would devastate my daughter if they took her dog Read the Q&A………………………………..
What Every Condo or HOA Needs To Know About Emotional Support Animals (MI)
Over the last several years, emotional support animals have been a continuous source of speculation and confusion for many Michigan condo and HOA boards. We all have seen the news stories of individuals attempting to bring animals such as squirrels and even alligators into places of public accommodation under the claim that they are emotional […]
HOA Q&A: Must homeowner associations allow ’emotional support’ pets in a no-pet community? (FL)
Q: We are a no pet community, and some short-term renters are bringing a dog and claiming the dog is an emotional support animal. The tenant emailed us a certificate stating that the dog is registered as a service animal. Do we need to allow this exception? Read the Q&A………………………………..
Our expert explains HOA rules regarding emotional support animals, cannabis use (FL)
Question: I am a board member of my condominium association. Is the board allowed to create rules or policies concerning ESAs in a condominium building? For example, can we impose weight limits, limit the number of animals per dwelling, exclude specific breeds, mandate that they only use the service elevator, etc. I’ve tried researching issue […]
Emotional support dog banned from N.J. condo fetches Supreme Court review
Let’s just get this on the record: Who’s a good dog? The court recognizes Luna is a good dog. The 70-pound shelter pup probably doesn’t even know she’s at the center of a fight that has climbed from a local condominium association to New Jersey’s highest court in a case that could remake the rules […]
Court says man can keep ‘emotional support emu’ in suburbia (VA)
A Virginia man was allowed to keep his emotional support emu after the trial judge found that the exotic bird was a “companion animal” rather than “livestock” under the municipal and state codes. Read the article………………………..
High-rise ‘service dogs’ appear to be regular pets (NV)
Q: Our high-rise community has restrictions in the governing documents regarding the number and size of dogs as pets for each resident. Several residents claim they require one or more service dogs negating the effectiveness of these rules. Read the Q&A………………………………..
Emotional support animal rights run amok? Condo resident balks at service dogs poolside (FL)
Question: We live in a 142-unit condominium. Regarding pets, our rules state that “this is a pet free community. No unit owner, lessee or guest may keep a pet within any unit or common area.” Read the Q&A……………………………….
Quebec condo owner told her emotional support husky is too heavy
A woman living north of Montreal is in a battle with her condo association after the board found that the two-year-old husky she adopted from the SPCA to help with mental issues is over the weight limit. Read the article………………………..
Quebec woman fighting condo board for right to keep dog that helps with her mental health
A Quebec woman suffering with chronic depression and social anxiety may be forced to give up her dog or move out unless she can prove to her condo board that the dog is an emotional support animal — something experts say is challenging as most provinces, including Quebec, have no standards for this certification. Read the […]
Condo Charged with Discrimination for Delay in Approving Assistance Animal
In a recent case out of Pennsylvania, a condominium association was found to have violated Fair Housing laws for its delay in approving requests for reasonable accommodation for an emotional support animal belonging to a resident and for imposing conditions on the animals’ use of the common area. Read the article………………………..
Delayed Decisions On Accommodation Requests Lead To Trouble
A recent federal court decision in U.S. v. The Dorchester Owners Association, No. 20-1396 (E.D. Penn. Jan. 25, 2023), is instructive as to how boards of directors can put their associations at risk when they fail to make timely final decisions on accommodation requests or impose unreasonable conditions in granting those requests. Read the article………………………..
Navy veteran fighting Jupiter community HOA to keep service dog off leash (FL)
A U.S. Navy veteran in Jupiter is in a battle with his homeowner’s association over the right to have his service dog off-leash in their neighborhood. Tim Durbin has PTSD and said his dog needs to be loose so she can respond when he has a medical emergency, but the HOA said it’s against the […]
Another Win for Dogs: Court Allows Emotional Support Dog Violating Association Pet Policy (NJ)
On March 23, the New Jersey Appellate Division decided the case of Players Place II Condominium Association, Inc. v. K.P. and B.F., (A-1304-20) (App. Div. March 23, 2023). Despite a finding that the proposed emotional support dog was too large for the condominium association’s pet policy and a failure by the unit owner to even […]
New Laws Regarding Emotional Support Animals (FL)
Nothing evokes more of an “emotional” response than the issue of emotional support animals in a no-pet community. While this is not a new issue, and has been discussed many times in this forum and others, Florida laws affect how a community handles a request for a reasonable accommodation to its governing documents, rules and […]
Assistance Animals (AZ)
A recent case in Pennsylvania, U.S. v. The Dorchester Owners Association, No. 20-1396 (E.D. Penn. Jan. 25, 2023), ruled that The Dorchester Owners Association (“Association”) engaged in discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) in connection with requests for assistance animals. Read the article………………………..
Federal Court Permits Fair Housing Claim to Keep Six Emotional Support Chickens to Proceed to Trial (MI)
Has your condominium or homeowners association encountered a request for an emotional support animal under the Fair Housing Act? If not, you are likely to encounter a request in the future as requests for emotional support animals in community associations have been on the rise in recent years. HOAs and condo associations are subject to […]
Mere Emotional Attachment to a Dog Does Not Create an Emotional Support Animal (ON)
The Condominium Authority Tribunal continues to find that residents who keep animals at a condominium property in contravention of the corporation’s declaration or rules must provide adequate medical proof of a disability-related need for the animal, unless such need is obvious. Read the article………………………..
‘Cash grab’: Man refuses to pay legal fee to keep service dog in Etobicoke condo (ON)
An Etobicoke man who refused to pay a hefty fee to keep his service dog in his condo says he’s prepared to take the matter to a human rights tribunal to keep his beloved animal from being evicted. Read the article………………………..
The Dog Stays – Emotional Support Animal- Condo Authority Tribunal Decision (ON)
The CAT in York Condominium Corporation No. 288 v. Tamhane sheds some light on what corporations shouldn’t do when faced with concerns about an emotional support animal. Read the article………………………..
‘It’s taking a toll’: Young Toronto family says condo board is threatening to evict their service dog (ON)
Varun Mutneja has relied on his service dog Nala for years to support his mental health. But now, he and his pregnant wife say the board at their recently purchased condo is threatening to kick the four-year-old golden retriever out. Read the article………………………..
Dog owners in an affordable-housing community outside of Telluride speak of harassment and discrimination (CO)
An affordable-housing community outside of Telluride has disallowed dogs since its inception in 1992 in an effort to protect area wildlife. Over the last half decade, an increase in emotional support animals has become a source of tension in the community of Lawson Hill, and ESA dog owners are beginning to speak out about what […]
Condo rules for animals vary widely
When my clients are considering the purchase of a condominium or cooperative, they initially have three association guidelines on their minds: the rental policy, the renovation policy, and the pet policy. Read the article………………………..
Condominium Authority Tribunal Holds That Dog Is Not a Service Animal (ON)
In the case of Waterloo North Condominium Corporation No. 70 v. Sinyard, the condominium corporation sought an order for the removal of a dog. The corporation had two reasons: Read the article………………………..
CAT Permits Resident With a Disability to Keep Her Dog (ON)
In the case of YRSCC No. 1375 v. Sousa, the parties agreed that the resident needed a dog because of the resident’s disability. However, the condominium corporation argued that a smaller dog that complied with the condominium corporation’s rules could meet this need. Read the article………………………..
Welcome mat or “No Pets”: HOAs struggle with support and service dogs
Dogs have gotten a bad rap lately. So have condominium HOAs struggling to enforce their rules. Can’t the two just get along? In the “emotional support” era, some dog owners have paid for the paperwork from a licensed mental health professional or doctor needed to make their canine a comfort or emotional support animal (ESA). […]
Condo Smarts: Service and emotional support pets exempt from bylaw restrictions (BC)
Q: We recently moved into a townhouse complex with our two dogs. Immediately on occupancy, the council notified us that we were only allowed one pet, and we had to remove the other dog. Read the Q&A……………………………….
Who Let the Dogs Out?
Many condominium and community associations are receiving increasingly frequent requests from residents to keep dogs and other “assistance animals” in communities that do not allow pets. Where pets are allowed, the requests are often for dogs that are much larger than the maximum weight limit, or are for a prohibited breed of dog, such as […]
His emotional support animal is an alligator. They sleep in the same bed (PA)
Joseph Henney’s emotional support animal WallyGator goes with him almost everywhere, from the grocery store to walks in the park. They hug each other and sleep in the same bed. WallyGator is an alligator. Read the article………………………..
Pet Policies and Assistance Animals: The New Normal for Community Associations (IL)
Among the many impacts the coronavirus pandemic has had on daily lives, two trends that have become part of the “new normal” include pet adoption and remote work. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), nearly one in five American households “acquired a cat or dog since the beginning […]
Emotional rover coaster: Accommodating emotional support animal requests
Community associations often struggle when a resident requests an accommodation for an emotional support animal. It’s a complicated issue that requires expert advice. Boards that err in the way they handle requests could face investigations, lawsuits, and fines. Read the article………………………..
Community Association Building Blocks – The Fair Housing Act and Emotional Support Animals [VIDEO]
The Federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) prohibits housing providers and their agents and governing bodies, such as Associations, from discriminating against a resident or potential resident, regardless of whether the resident or potential resident will be the owner or listed tenant of the housing unit because of the resident’s or potential resident’s disability. Watch the […]
Assistance Animals & Community Associations
If it looks like a dog and acts like a dog, then community association restrictions regarding dogs must apply, right? Not if the dog is an assistance animal. Assistance animals play an important role in the lives of people with disabilities. The federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as […]
Real estate Q&A: How do I make HOA keep neighbors’ emotional support animals’ fur out of my laundry? (FL)
Q: Our condo association recently allowed several residents to have emotional support animals, supposedly with proper vetting of the paperwork. I am very allergic to animal fur, and I will be sharing our floor’s laundry facilities with the animal owners. Is there anything I can do to prevent them from using the laundry facility, so […]
Can Assistance Animals In HOA Communities Be Restricted?
Homeowners associations often have rules restricting pets. But, do these rules apply to assistance animals in HOA communities? What counts as an assistance animal anyway? Read the entire article……………………………….
Is there actually such thing as a No Pet Property in a Homeowners Association? (MN)
Many homeowners associations restrict or prohibit pets. This may make the property attractive to buyers who have allergies, a fear of dogs, or who simply do not want to live in that type of environment with pets. But when is a “pet-free” property not pet free? Read the entire article……………………………….
B.C. strata tenant wins bid to keep three emotional support cats
B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ruled an Okanagan woman can keep her three emotional support cats despite her strata’s ban on more than one pet. Jennifer Schlosser and Zackary Lenius challenged their strata’s ban, saying the strata failed to meet its duty to accommodate the need under the B.C. Human Rights Code. Read the entire […]
How HOAs Can Establish Effective Pet Policies: Arizona HOA Laws for Pets and Support Animals
While dogs are often lauded as man’s best friend there are times when they, as well as other pets, can pose legal issues for HOAs and condominium associations. Many of the legal issues can be avoided by regulating and enforcing pet policies in HOAs. Whether you want to place restrictions on animal and pet owner […]
He requested an emotional support dog but his Vancouver strata shot it down. A tribunal agreed (BC)
The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal upheld a Vancouver strata’s decision to deny a man an emotional support dog on the grounds that he didn’t provide enough information Read the entire article……………………………….
Health & Saf. Code §122319.5. Emotional Support Animal/Dog & Service Dog Definitions (CA)
Health & Saf. Code §122319.5. Emotional Support Animal/Dog & Service Dog Definitions. New statutes and amendments effective January 1, 2022 Read the entire article……………………………….
Health & Saf. Code §122318. Health Care Practitioner Criteria for Emotional Support Dog Documentation (CA)
Health & Saf. Code §122318. Health Care Practitioner Criteria for Emotional Support Dog Documentation. New statutes and amendments effective January 1, 2022 Read the entire article……………………………….
Fairhope veteran training new service dog amid legal battle with HOA (AL)
The legal battle between a Baldwin County veteran and his homeowner’s association continues as he claims the Fairhope Motorcoach Resort seeks to prevent him from having a service dog in the neighborhood. Read the entire article……………………………….
Things You Should Know About Emotional Support Animal Laws in Florida
Florida’s law on service animals is quite clear. It restricts the type of animal that qualifies for specific work with or without training. It has become a trend for the board operating pet-restricted communities to receive more requests for ESAs than they did previously. Read the entire article……………………………….