Everything You Need to Know About Renting with an Emotional Support or Service Animal

Every renter has a list of non-negotiables for an apartment. For some, that might be a community pool or fitness center. For others, it might be an open layout or a walk-in closet. But for renters with emotional support or service animals, the top priority is finding a rental where their furry companion is welcome.

But what exactly is an emotional support or service animal? How do they differ from your average pet? And how can you ensure you’ll find a home that welcomes you and your animal with open arms? We’ll answer all these commonly asked questions in our guide to renting with an emotional support or service animal. Here’s a look at what we’ll cover:

• The difference between emotional support animals vs. service animals
• How tenants with emotional support or service animals are legally protected
• The application process for tenants with emotional support animals or service animals
• When a landlord can deny tenants with emotional support or service animals

What Is an Emotional Support Animal?

Most pet owners will agree that their animal provides them with love, comfort, and, of course, emotional support. However, just because your furry friend makes you feel at ease doesn’t necessarily mean it's an emotional support animal.

An emotional support animal, or ESA, is a companion animal that helps their owner cope with emotional and mental health conditions, such as anxiety or depression. These animals are not meant to perform special tasks or tricks. Rather, their purpose is to provide therapeutic benefits, such as comfort and companionship, to mitigate the emotional weight of their owner’s condition.

Emotional support animals are not limited to dogs or cats. In fact, any domesticated animal can qualify as an emotional support animal, including mice, rabbits, birds, and even horses. However, we will assume that you do not intend to bring a horse to your apartment. So, for the sake of this blog, we’ll focus on the most common emotional support animals: dogs and cats.

What Is a Service Animal?

While any pet inherently evokes positive emotion, a service animal takes support to the next level. A service animal is trained to perform tasks directly related to their owner’s condition or disability. For example, a guide dog for someone with visual impairment or a hearing dog for a deaf or hard-of-hearing individual.

Here are some other examples cited from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA):

• A dog who retrieves objects for someone in a wheelchair
• A dog who reminds someone with depression to take their daily medication
• A dog who alerts someone with PTSD of an oncoming panic attack
• A dog who detects seizures of someone with epilepsy

What’s the Difference Between Emotional Support Animals and Service Animals?

The main difference between emotional support animals and service animals is their purpose. As we just mentioned, service dogs are specifically trained to perform tasks that will mitigate their owner’s physical or psychiatric health condition. Meanwhile, an emotional support animal is intended to provide comfort, relief, and companionship and is not trained to perform specific tasks related to their owner’s condition.

Another key difference between service animals and emotional support animals is their type/breed. While emotional support companions can be any type of pet, service animals can only be dogs. However, the ADA does not restrict service animals to a particular size or breed. All that matters is that the dog is adequately trained to relieve and support their owner with the right tasks.

Are Renters with Emotional Support Animals and Service Animals Protected by Law?

The answer is yes, you and your furry-four-legged friend are protected by law. However, your legal rights will slightly differ depending on whether your animal is for emotional support or service. Here’s a breakdown of how legal protections range for each type of companion:

Legal protections for tenants with emotional support animals

Tenants with emotional support animals are protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). This act prohibits housing providers from discriminating against tenants with disabilities, including those who require an emotional support animal.

Under the FHA, a housing provider must allow “reasonable accommodations” for tenants with disabilities. For tenants with assistance animals, this could mean overriding an existing pet policy to accommodate an emotional support animal or waiving pet deposits or fees.

The FHA states that an emotional support animal accommodation must be met under the following conditions:

• A person with a disability, or someone on their behalf, made the accommodation request.
• The request was accompanied by reliable, disability-related documentation verifying the condition. (if the disability or need for the emotional support animal isn’t clearly evident)
• The housing provider has not proven that:
  • Accommodating the animal would create an undue financial or administrative burden
  • Accommodating the animal would affect essential operations
  • The specific animal in question would threaten the health or safety of others, even if there are reasonable accommodations in place to mitigate the risk
  • The animal would damage the property, even with preventive measures and reasonable accommodations in place

Legal protections for tenants with service animals

While service animals are also protected by the FHA, their coverage extends further under the ADA. The ADA permits service animals in any place open to the general public, even if an establishment doesn’t allow pets. This can include restaurants, shops, schools, hotels, and hospitals.

In the case of housing, the ADA protects service animals in rental properties, as well as housing at public or private universities, government-run public housing programs, and emergency shelters. If you live in an apartment community, know that your service animal is permitted to enter any part of the premises --- not just your specific unit. This means you can take them to the community leasing office, fitness center, pool, or any other common amenity.

What Is the Application Process Like for Tenants with an Emotional Support or Service Animal?

The rental application process for tenants with emotional support or service animals isn’t very different from that of a traditional renter. However, there are a few extra steps involved that you must be aware of.

For tenants with emotional support animals, you must provide what’s known as an emotional support animal letter. This is a signed document from a doctor, psychologist, or mental health professional stating that an animal companion is necessary for your wellbeing and recovery. Along with a professional’s signature, your ESA must also state how long you’ve been patient and explain why your animal companion is necessary.

Renting with a service animal has similar requirements. Your landlord may request documentation from a licensed healthcare professional verifying your need for the animal. On top of that, you might also provide evidence that your pet is trained to perform specific tasks related to your disability. Providing these materials upfront will streamline the process for all parties involved – including your furry companion.

Restrictions for landlords

Throughout the application process, landlords cannot, under any circumstances, ask a tenant about their disability or why they require an emotional support or service animal. Landlords also cannot deny emotional support or service animals based on allergies or general aversions, pet breed, pet weight, or current no-pet policies. Lastly, it is illegal for landlords to charge additional fees, such as extra rent or deposits, to tenants with emotional support or service animals.   

It is, however, important to remember that tenants are responsible for any damage incurred by their emotional support or service animals. If your companion vandalizes the property in any way, you will be expected to pay for all necessary repairs and maintenance. This is why it's essential to properly train and care for your emotional support or service animal before and during your lease.

Can Landlords Deny Tenants with Emotional Support or Service Animals?

Generally, landlords cannot deny housing to tenants with emotional support or service animals. However, there are certain circumstances where rejecting these rental applicants is warranted, including:

Failure to provide proper documentation

Landlords can request official documentation to confirm a tenant’s medical condition and need for an emotional support animal. While documentation doesn’t need to explicitly outline the tenant’s condition, it must confirm that the animal is necessary for the tenant’s well-being. The letter must be signed and dated by a licensed healthcare professional.

Safety concerns

If an emotional support or service animal exhibits threatening or aggressive behavior, landlords may have reasonable grounds to deny their owner’s application. To avoid such issues, make sure your animal is well-trained and easy to control.

Illegal animals

A landlord can reject a tenant with an emotional support or service animal if the animal in question is illegal under state or federal laws. If you have an exotic animal – we’re talking anything from peacocks to kangaroos – make sure it’s legal to house before applying for a rental property.

Unreasonable size

Landlords can deny tenants with emotional support or service animals if they are too large to accommodate. Take our example from earlier. If you’re trying to bring a horse to a small apartment, you might rethink that decision. In this case, a landlord would probably consider the horse to be a potential liability and, as a result, deny your application. However, this rule does not apply to the general size of domesticated animals. 

Find a Pet-Friendly Apartment with Apartments.com

Finding a place to rent is stressful as it is. Add in the pressure of accommodating a service or emotional support animal, and your search becomes even more overwhelming. However, with adequate knowledge about your specific animal, legal rights, and proper documentation, you can make the process a whole lot smoother. When you’ve got those bases covered, you can head over to Apartments.com to start your search!

At Apartments.com, we help renters everywhere find their ideal home, including those with emotional support or service animals. Our advanced search filters allow you to set specific preferences, such as “pet-friendly,” so you can quickly narrow down your options. Plus, with our virtual tours and detailed property descriptions, you can get a comprehensive view of each rental before even stepping foot in it. So, what are you waiting for? Start your search today on Apartments.com to find the perfect home for you and your four-legged friend.

This article was originally published on March 31, 2022, by Chanahra Fletcher.