Is it fair to have people check with the apartment management to see if assistance dogs are needed?

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Do you live in a home governed by a condominium, co-op, or homeowners association? Do you have questions about what they can and can’t do? Ryan Poliakoff, a Boca Raton attorney and author, has answers.

Publisher’s Note: The following letter is a follow-up to an earlier column in which a writer reported that apartment complex residents were circumventing the pet ban by “submitting paperwork about emotional support animals that appears fraudulent since they paid for certificates online.”

Ask: I quote from your recent article about dogs in apartment complexes: “It is very likely that these two residents can get legally sufficient letters, but it is worth putting them through the motions to obtain this.”

What if these people are honest? Is it still worth it to make a disabled person spend more money? It is biased advice and assumes the guilt of the people in the unit. I hope it doesn’t backfire on anyone because if my HOA did anything you suggest I would take them to court for harassment. Signed, RG

And:

You are really, really, really wrong when you ask about a disability. I have PTSD. If a landlord asks me what my disability is because I don’t look disabled, I should legally be able to punch them in the head. Signed, NW

Dear RG, NW and many others:

All my columns about animals get a very strong response, and the last column was no exception. I got other responses to my column that, unfortunately, suggested even more violent acts.

I don’t write laws. I explain to readers what the laws, along with the cases that interpret those laws, say about the issues raised in my questions.

RGHow would the housing provider know if they were being honest without asking for verification? The law is that when someone requests an accommodation under the Fair Housing Act, housing providers are allowed to make a meaningful inquiry about the nature of the disability (not necessarily the specific condition, but the fact that the person has a disability – that the condition affects one or more functions of daily living, among other things) and that there is a relationship between the disability and the need for the accommodation. You say that if your HOA were to ask you, a person who is not visibly disabled, for information to verify your disability and need for the accommodation, you would be “suing them for harassment.” I understand that having to validate your disability is unpleasant and intrusive, but it is also what the law expressly allows. You would not succeed if you were to sue your HOA for simply asking you to provide the legally allowed verification of your disability. You are requesting an accommodation and the price of the accommodation is to verify your disability-related need for that accommodation.

You say I took the “blame” of the people in the unit, but I am simply acknowledging that people can (and do) lie about their disability to justify keeping their pets. If someone simply presents a certificate they purchased online without any verification being required, what information would the housing provider use to verify that they are legitimately disabled? If the housing provider were prohibited from questioning the disability, all requests for accommodations would be granted without question – but that is not what the law says or allows.

And to NW, I’m not “wrong,” I’m just stating what the law actually is. If you have PTSD, a disability that can’t be verified visibly; and you refuse to give your housing provider evidence that proves your need for an accommodation to their policies and procedures, they can deny your request. If you don’t like the law, I absolutely respect and understand that — but your complaint is not with my “wrong” answer, it’s with the people who write the laws.

You and others who feel the same way can contact your senators and representatives and encourage them to amend fair housing laws to limit a housing provider’s ability to verify an individual’s disability.

I will note that the right to verify the need for a “service animal” (an animal specifically trained to perform a function for a disabled person) is much more limited under the Americans With Disabilities Act. But that law applies to places of public accommodation such as hotels, stores, and restaurants, not to housing providers. They are different laws with different applications.

Given the current state of the law in this area, no one should feel offended if his or her housing provider asks him or her for additional information to verify whether he or she is entitled to an accommodation under the rules of the Fair Housing Act.

The board also has a duty to the other residents; and in many communities, residents feel strongly about their “no pets” policies. Would I personally live in a building or community that didn’t allow pets? I wouldn’t — but that’s a personal choice I have to make.

Ryan Poliakoff, a partner at Poliakoff Backer, LLP, is a board-certified specialist in condominium and planned development law. This column is dedicated to the memory of Gary Poliakoff. Ryan Poliakoff and Gary Poliakoff are co-authors of “New Neighborhoods — The Consumer’s Guide to Condominium, Co-Op and HOA Living.” Please email your questions to [email protected]. Be sure to include your location.