HUD has consistently taken the position that a landlord can never charge pet rent or a pet deposit for a service or assistance animal.¹ It is not a position that makes any sense although HUD has held it for a long time.² In Leslie v. 1125 Hammond, LP, 2023 WL 3858575 (Ga. App. June 7, 2023) the Georgia Court of Appeals explains why the position is wrong:
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¹ The latest formal statement in found in FHEO 2020-1, “Assessing a Person’s Request to Have an Animal as a Reasonable Accommodation Under the Fair Housing Act.”
² See, Joint Statement of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Justice, Reasonable Accommodations Under the Fair Housing Act (“Joint Statement”), Q and A 11 (May 17, 2004),
³ See my blog: Unconventional wisdom concerning pet deposits under the Fair Housing Act.
(4) See, Forbes, Pet Ownership Statistics and Facts in 2023.