I live in a Condo with a "No Pet's" Policy

First, your service or emotional support dog is not a pet. The Fair Housing Act (FHA) protects a person with a disability from discrimination in obtaining housing. This includes property you own that may be governed by a condo or homeowner’s association. Under this law, a landlord, condo, or homeowner’s association must provide reasonable accommodation to people with disabilities so that they have an equal opportunity to enjoy and use a dwelling.

Emotional support animals do not qualify as service animals under the ADA may nevertheless qualify as reasonable accommodations under the FHAct. In cases when a person with a disability uses a service animal or an emotional support animal, a reasonable accommodation may include waiving a no-pet rule or a pet deposit.

A landlord, condo, or homeowner’s association may not ask a housing applicant about the existence, nature, and extent of his or her disability. However, an individual with a disability who requests a reasonable accommodation may be asked to provide documentation so that the landlord or homeowner’s association can properly review the accommodation request.

They can ask a handler to obtain, in writing, (1) that the tenant or a member of his or her family is a person with a disability; (2) the need for the animal to assist the person with that specific disability; and (3) that the animal assists the person with a disability. It is important to keep in mind that the ADA may apply in the housing context as well, for example with student housing. In the case of a service dog, the documentation does not need to be provided under the regulations of the ADA. Remember that an emotional support dog is not protected by the ADA, but is by the Fair Housing Act.