HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - March 9, 2018
Published: Fri, 03/09/18
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Places are Cracking Down on Emotional Support Animals. Can Your HOA, Too?
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Have you been paying attention to the news lately? If not, you may have missed reports in which courts or corporations are pushing back against what they perceive to be abuses on the emotional support animals.
In this week’s tip, we give you the latest news and ponder whether a change is coming on that front.
The news includes Vermont’s highest court holding that a landlord doesn’t have to accommodate a tenant’s aggressive comfort animal. Then there was United Airlines’ recent denial of service to a woman claiming an emotional support peacock and its issuance of new, tighter rules (following Delta’s lead).
Let’s start with the Vermont court decision, which is music to our experts’ ears, but may not mean much beyond that state.
“It’s hard to say if a change is coming,” says Phaedra J. Howard, a partner specializing in community association law at Hellmuth & Johnson PLLC in Edina, Minn. “I do think that decision would have come out differently if it had been a fair housing claim with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rather than an eviction claim through the housing court system.
“Unless something’s happened beyond the HUD cases I’ve seen, I question whether the behavior of this dog reached the point where HUD would have said, ‘No, you don’t have to allow the tenant’s accommodation,’” says Howard. “Even then, HUD wants landlords to ask: ‘OK, is there no way we can have this animal there with more accommodations?’
“The Fair Housing Act, which HUD is enforcing, does have an exception for a threat to the safety of residents,” explains Howard. “But the case law I’ve seen is that you have to show an established history; it can’t just be a fear this dog might do something at some point.
“So if this case had been before HUD, I think HUD would have said, ‘If you think this dog poses a danger—because right now it’s just growling, barking, and lunging—you have to show a history of it physically attacking another person or dog. Also, are there ways to mitigate that behavior and still allow the dog?’” states Howard.
“In my experience with the case law out there, I don’t think HUD would say this court got it right,” concludes Howard. “That being said, we’ve got a new administration in place, and HUD could change its position. But I haven’t seen that from HUD yet with the cases that have come out.”
If the question is whether change is needed, there’s much more clarity. Our experts all pine for it. But several also advise their clients not to be so afraid of accommodations requests that they rubber-stamp them. Read more in our new article: https://www.hoaleader.com/members/3691.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Is the Tide Turning on Assistance Animals and HOAs?
Vermont's highest court has held that a landlord doesn't have to accommodate a tenant's aggressive comfort animal. Couple that with United Airlines' recent denial of service to a woman claiming an emotional support peacock and its issuance of new, tighter rules (following Delta's lead), are we seeing a trend to crack down on the mess that is comfort animals?
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/Tide-Turning-on-Assistance-Animals-HOAs.cfm
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The Good & Bad of Facebook, Twitter & Instagram for HOAs:
How to Use Social Media Effectively in Your HOA — and Protect Your Association and Board
Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (and other social media tools) make it so much easier to keep your owners informed and involved in your condo or HOA. However, they can also be hotbeds of anger and misinformation. What's a wise HOA board to do?
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/products/social-media-hoa-webinar-a.cfm
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HOA's Data Made Public for 10 Months; How Would You Respond?
You're entrusted with all kinds of confidential information. Do you have a plan in case some of it is accidentally released--and not even by you!
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/HOAs-Data-Made-Public-for-10-Months-How-Would-You-Respond.cfm
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What's Your Risk--and Plan--If There's a Breach of Your HOA Data?
An HOAeader.com reader explains a recent data breach and worries about the association's exposure: "Our property manager didn't follow their own internal processes and sent an unredacted accounts receivable file, bank statements, and information to a real estate agent. The real estate agent had an unknown breach, and the information would up on Google--exposed for around 10 months. The management company was notified in October by a member and was asked for clarification by a board member, and it pointed to a previous company. (The information was left out there.)
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/Whats-Your-Risk-and-Plan-If-Theres-Breach-Your-HOA-Data.cfm
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Can HOA Owners Trim Trees? (And What to Do with Owners Who Ignore Your Rules)?
An HOAleader.com reader asks: "We have two owners who have seriously damaged three trees on the HOA property and common areas to 'improve their view' from their windows. Our R&Rs have nothing in them about vandalism or damage of this nature by owners. Now that the horse is out of the barn, do we put something in the R&Rs to cover this sort of incident?"
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/Can-HOA-Owners-Trim-Trees-And-What-Do-with-Owners-Who-Ignore-Your-Rules.cfm
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