Protected Class: Handicapping Condition / Disability

60% (sixty percent) of all FHA complaints are related to the denial of reasonable accommodations and disability access. Also, most HUD charges of discrimination against a housing provider involve the denial of reasonable accommodations to a person who has a physical or mental disability that the housing provider cannot readily observe.

The Fair Housing Act defines DISABILITY as:…

those individuals with mental or physical impairments that substantially limit one or more major life activities. The term mental or physical impairment may include conditions such as blindness, hearing impairment, mobility impairment, HIV infection, mental retardation, alcoholism, drug addiction, chronic fatigue, learning disability,
head injury, or mental illness.

Under Federal and State Fair Housing laws, if an individual has a disability/handicapping condition which substantially limits their major life activities, such as
learning, walking, seeing, and breathing,
the individual may request a reasonable accommodation to occupy and use the welling.

 NC Fair Housing Act defines HANDICAPPING CONDITION as:
(i) A physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of a person’s major life activities;
(ii) A record of having such impairment;
(iii) Being regarded as having such impairment.
Handicapping condition does not include current, illegal use of or addiction to a controlled substance as defined in 21 U.S.C. § 802, the Controlled Substances Act. The protections against discrimination on the basis of handicapping
condition shall apply to a buyer or renter of a dwelling, a person residing in or intending to reside in the dwelling after it is sold, rented, or made available, or any person associated with the buyer or renter.

However you should be aware that five jurisdictions in NC have local fair housing ordinances certified by HUD as “substantially equivalent” to federal FHA. Those five jurisdictions are:
the City of Durham;
the City of Greensboro;
the City of Winston-Salem;
Orange County; and
the City of Charlotte-Mecklenburg County.

WHAT IS A REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION?
A reasonable accommodation is a change, exception, or adjustment to a rule, policy, practice, or service that may be necessary for a person with a disability to have equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling, including public and common use spaces. It is not necessary for an individual to submit a written request or use the words
“reasonable accommodation,” “assistance animal”, or any other special words to request a reasonable accommodation under FHA. However, the person making the request is encouraged to do so in order to avoid miscommunication.
The request for a reasonable accommodation for an assistance animal may be:
1. oral or written; and
2. requested by others on behalf of the individual, including a person legally residing in the unit with the requesting individual, a legal guardian, or an authorized representative.

In addition, an individual may also want to keep a copy of a reasonable request and supporting documentation in case there is a dispute regarding the validity of the request later.

An individual may request an accommodation in order to use or occupy a dwelling either before or after acquiring the assistance animal. Under FHA, a person with a disability may make a reasonable accommodation request at any time; the housing provider must consider the request even if the resident made the request after bringing the animal into the dwelling.

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