Articles

Stewart is the property manager at Collins Square Apartments, a small rental community with 31 units. Collins Square allows its residents to have up to two pets. Its lease agreement requires each resident with a pet to pay an extra deposit, to follow local leash laws, to pick up after the pet and dispose of its waste, and to keep the pet from disturbing other residents or causing damage. Quinn recently signed a one-year lease at the community. At the outset, he notified the management that he had an assistance dog and provided a letter from his therapist that verified his emotional...

            I got a text message last week from a friend in south central Kentucky who has been reading kylandlordlaw.com. He said he thought the site is “a great resource for landlords that are under that particular law”. While I took a second to bask in the compliment (okay, several seconds), it struck me that my friend, an attorney who practices criminal law, was under the impression that kylandlordlaw.com is only of benefit to landlords in certain parts of the state.              This impression was based upon my friend’s (correct)...

In our discussion of the Hidden Disability Conundrum, linked here, we noted that landlords do not have to take a tenant’s word for it that he or she is disabled and has a disability related need for an exception to the landlord’s rules and policies. Instead, the landlord may require that a tenant provide reliable verification if the disability or the need for the accommodation is not obvious or known to the landlord. Although I’ve repeatedly stressed that landlords shouldn’t try to play the role of a medical professional and question medical opinions, this doesn’t mean that you must accept...

Mr. Coleman has lived at his current apartment for eight years. His original lease, which has been renewed every year, does not allow him to have any pets. About two years ago, Mr. Coleman began having panic attacks on a daily basis. At the urging of his family, he began seeing a Licensed Clinical Psychologist on a regular basis. Shortly after he began seeing his psychologist, he bought a small dachshund, which he brought to live with him in his apartment. Thereafter, his panic attacks began to decrease to the point where they rarely occurred. He reported this information to...

In my last post, our property manager, Noah, from Stoops Pavilion had given written notice to his resident, Jennifer, that she would be allowed to have a support animal as a reasonable accommodation for her disability. Noah granted Jennifer’s request for the animal based on the letter from her therapist stating that her disability created a need for the dog in order to allow her to use and enjoy her apartment. Noah’s notice to Jennifer had asked her to come to the management office to show him the dog and to sign a lease addendum outlining the rights and obligations...