Potential tenant has a emotional support dog

[Anonymous]

If you have a single family house rental that is not rented through a real estate broker or agent, then you are not required to allow the ESA. Both the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) exclude that case and you will not be required to cover it. Also, if you have a multi-family unit (like a condo or duplex) and you inhabit one of the units.

However, assuming that doesn't cover you, then you are allowed to request documentation of a disability that needs an ESA. You can request that a physician or mental health professional send you a letter on their practice's official letterhead and include their professional license number that documents the prospective tenant's disability and need for an ESA. Note that they do not need to identify what the disability is, only that the prospective tenant has one that requires an ESA to treat. Alternatively, you can provide the medical or mental health professional to complete. I personally would specify that the mental health professional has seen the prospective tenant more than once and for more than a year.

You cannot charge a pet deposit, but I would make sure to have a larger deposit (at least one months rent) for such a situation to ensure that any damage can be covered.

You can read more details about your obligations and your rights as a landlord here. I recommend that you read this before you respond to the prospective tenant, as it specifically includes how to respond to the tenant and questions you can and cannot ask the tenant. Note although the page is named "service dog documentation" it covers both service animals, ESAs and the difference between the two and what you can and can't say or do in both cases.
https://ipropertymanagement.com/blog/service-dog-documentation

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op, you've gotten really bad advice in this thread so far. You cannot charge more fees for an emotional support animal or refuse to rent on that basis. It's against local, state, and federal fair housing laws.

It sounds like you're not contemplating doing these illegal things, though, and are just asking about any perils of people who require emotional support animals, right? Lots of veterans have them to help with PTSD. Lots of people with depression or anxiety have them. The animals help their person keep their mental health under control. No reason to be worried about a potential tenant who is taking care of their mental health in this way.

OP can’t charge a bigger deposit than he/she would for another animal, but they can charge the same they would otherwise.

+1 AND, the OP can ask for documentation. Because "emotional support" is such a mis-used term, OP can ask for documentation, and decide whether or not the documentation is satisfactory. If it isn't then the OP can specify what documentation would work. This is important, especially if OP normally does not allow pets and OP suspects that the tenant is asserting the right to have the emotional support animal as a way of getting around / under the current lease agreement. OP should reach out to Landlord-Tenant for the rental jurisdiction and they will give the information OP needs.

[Anonymous]

Big red flag. I personally would not rent to someone who claims to have an emotional support animal. Either they are trying to work the system and avoid the pet fee, in which case they will cause all kinds of other issues, or they have real mental health needs, which is sad bug not something you necessarily want to have to deal with as a landlord.

I would look for a way to get out of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP- I guess I am more concern about the tenant itself. His finance is good and his gf is also moving in as well. But will he be emotional problem for me?? LOL

LOL. I read "finance" as "fiancée" and so I thought, wait, this guy has a fiancée and a girlfriend? And they're all 3 moving in together???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:17 is wrong. An emotional support dog is a pet. This is not the same as a service animal that has undergone 1-2yrs of training and been placed with an individual who has been identified and screened as needing a service dog. This is why service dogs have access to places that other animals don't - restaurants, shops, etc.

Our sweet family dog cheers me up on a bad day and snuggles with the kids if they are sick, heck that makes her an emotional support animal.

This.
THIS IS NOT A SERVICE DOG.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t waive the pet fee personally. I would be ok renting to them though.

Would not waive the fee. Has nothing to do with appreciating support animals.

OP, please be careful and read the article I cited above. You have gotten a lot of bad information from PPs.

For example, you cannot discriminate and refuse to rent to this prospective tenant. Although ESAs are not as strictly regulated as service animals, you are still not allowed to discriminate on a prospective tenant that has one. You are also not allowed to charge a pet deposit for such an animal. You can charge a larger general deposit, but you cannot apply a pet deposit (even if you would for normal pets) for an ESA. That's proscribed by the FHA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have a single family house rental that is not rented through a real estate broker or agent, then you are not required to allow the ESA. Both the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) exclude that case and you will not be required to cover it. Also, if you have a multi-family unit (like a condo or duplex) and you inhabit one of the units.

However, assuming that doesn't cover you, then you are allowed to request documentation of a disability that needs an ESA. You can request that a physician or mental health professional send you a letter on their practice's official letterhead and include their professional license number that documents the prospective tenant's disability and need for an ESA. Note that they do not need to identify what the disability is, only that the prospective tenant has one that requires an ESA to treat. Alternatively, you can provide the medical or mental health professional to complete. I personally would specify that the mental health professional has seen the prospective tenant more than once and for more than a year.

You cannot charge a pet deposit, but I would make sure to have a larger deposit (at least one months rent) for such a situation to ensure that any damage can be covered.

You can read more details about your obligations and your rights as a landlord here. I recommend that you read this before you respond to the prospective tenant, as it specifically includes how to respond to the tenant and questions you can and cannot ask the tenant. Note although the page is named "service dog documentation" it covers both service animals, ESAs and the difference between the two and what you can and can't say or do in both cases.
https://ipropertymanagement.com/blog/service-dog-documentation

That’s crazy that you can’t charge a pet deposit for animals that have no special training. Does the law distinguish between emotional support dogs and emotional support miniature horses?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP- I guess I am more concern about the tenant itself. His finance is good and his gf is also moving in as well. But will he be emotional problem for me?? LOL

Not a landlord, but I manage a team at work and I will say what I would only say anonymously. People with emotional support animals (as opposed to a seeing eye dog or a seizure / blood sugar alert dog) are more likely to be entitled, high maintenance, and emotionally draining.

[Anonymous]

OP, I am using a realtor for my townhouse. First the tenant reach out to me, he asked if pet is allowed and I said yes but required non refundable deposit. Once he submit the application to my agent, they did not disclose the dog is emotional support dog until we about to draft the lease. If I decided to not rent to him, will I get sue? Again this is first time I am dealing with this.

[Anonymous]

Rent to the damned tenant and let him have his dog already.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I am using a realtor for my townhouse. First the tenant reach out to me, he asked if pet is allowed and I said yes but required non refundable deposit. Once he submit the application to my agent, they did not disclose the dog is emotional support dog until we about to draft the lease. If I decided to not rent to him, will I get sue? Again this is first time I am dealing with this.

You would need a legally defensible reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- I guess I am more concern about the tenant itself. His finance is good and his gf is also moving in as well. But will he be emotional problem for me?? LOL

Not a landlord, but I manage a team at work and I will say what I would only say anonymously. People with emotional support animals (as opposed to a seeing eye dog or a seizure / blood sugar alert dog) are more likely to be entitled, high maintenance, and emotionally draining.

Should I share this with my son? His best friend was blown up in front of him. He carried the body parts back to their base. He has an emotional support dog and it’s made a huge difference in his PTSD. She is a German Shepherd. Somehow she just knows when he needs her. She climbs onto him and covers him with her body.

He is not entitled, high maintenance, or emotionally draining. He is hurting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- I guess I am more concern about the tenant itself. His finance is good and his gf is also moving in as well. But will he be emotional problem for me?? LOL

Not a landlord, but I manage a team at work and I will say what I would only say anonymously. People with emotional support animals (as opposed to a seeing eye dog or a seizure / blood sugar alert dog) are more likely to be entitled, high maintenance, and emotionally draining.

Should I share this with my son? His best friend was blown up in front of him. He carried the body parts back to their base. He has an emotional support dog and it’s made a huge difference in his PTSD. She is a German Shepherd. Somehow she just knows when he needs her. She climbs onto him and covers him with her body.

He is not entitled, high maintenance, or emotionally draining. He is hurting.

How does he feel about you exploiting his trauma to win arguments on the internet? Gross.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:12:17 is wrong. An emotional support dog is a pet. This is not the same as a service animal that has undergone 1-2yrs of training and been placed with an individual who has been identified and screened as needing a service dog. This is why service dogs have access to places that other animals don't - restaurants, shops, etc.

Our sweet family dog cheers me up on a bad day and snuggles with the kids if they are sick, heck that makes her an emotional support animal.

This.
THIS IS NOT A SERVICE DOG.

+2000

I would not rent to this person. An "emotional support animal" is not a real thing. Service animal, for a real, legit, medical need, is totally different. And you are allowed to as a few questions questions that allow you to differentiate between some jerk gaming the system for a pet, and a person who has a legit need with a trained service animal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Big red flag. I personally would not rent to someone who claims to have an emotional support animal. Either they are trying to work the system and avoid the pet fee, in which case they will cause all kinds of other issues, or they have real mental health needs, which is sad bug not something you necessarily want to have to deal with as a landlord.

I would look for a way to get out of this.

DP - came here to say just this. If he's trying to get out of a pet fee with a BS pet designation, he's a bad person.