No casual overnight visitor, this is a caregiver

Question: My mother has had surgery for a broken hip. She requires a full-time caregiver for four months to recover from this condition. The resident manager of the apartment complex where she lives says that no other occupant, other than my mother, is allowed to stay overnight in the apartment. Can the manager refuse to allow the caregiver?

Answer: No. Even if this is a valid rule -- and there is a question about whether it is legal for the manager to restrict guests from visiting overnight -- your mother’s situation is special. In this case, the manager is required to recognize her needs.

Under California fair housing laws, people with disabilities -- even temporary ones -- have special rights. These special rights cover your mother’s temporary disability. She can request a “reasonable accommodation” for her disability, and the manager should waive the rule.

The manager may ask for a medical provider’s statement to verify that a full-time caregiver is needed for a certain amount of time. Once this verification is obtained, the manager must allow the caregiver to stay overnight or provide evidence that this would somehow be overly burdensome to the housing provider.

Providing reasonable accommodation for your mother does not mean the manager will be required to waive the rules for other tenants. Only people with disabilities are entitled to special treatment, and only as needed for their medical reasons.

Ban on poolside snacks is fair

Question: The manager has posted a notice at our apartment complex pool saying that no food items or plastic bottles will be allowed inside the pool fence. There are a lot of young children living in the complex, and we need to feed them snacks or baby formula. Can the manager make this rule?

Answer: Housing providers have a great deal of discretion to make rules and policies for their property, provided they apply them uniformly.

It is illegal under fair housing laws to discriminate against families with children, or to make overly restrictive policies that affect families with children.

For example, it would be discriminatory to post a sign that reads, “No baby formula” or “Children may not eat in the pool area.” If adults are allowed to eat or drink in the pool area, but not children, then the rule is being applied in a discriminatory manner. This would be illegal under fair housing laws.

The sign your manager posted seems reasonable and logically related to a legitimate concern about preventing contamination to the pool and preventing the accumulation of garbage. Parents should abide by the posted rule in this case and arrange to feed children outside the pool area.

Renter died there; must manager tell?

Question: What is the rule about notifying prospective tenants that a previous occupant died in the unit? The manager of the apartment complex I own is not sure what to tell applicants.

Answer: California Civil Code Section 1710.2 covers your question. In general, the code states that an owner of real property or his or her agent is not obligated to disclose a death, or the manner of death, of a previous occupant if the death occurred more than three years before the date the prospective tenant offers to rent the unit. If the death occurred less than three years to the prospective tenant’s application, it must be disclosed, unless it was due to complications of acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

Under no circumstances, regardless of the time period, can a property owner or his or her agent misrepresent the fact that a death occurred if directly asked by a prospective tenant.

This column is prepared by Project Sentinel, a rental housing mediation service in Sunnyvale, Calif. Questions may be sent to 1055 Sunnyvale-Saratoga Road, Suite 3, Sunnyvale, CA 94087, but cannot be answered individually. For housing discrimination questions, complaints or help, call the state Department of Fair Housing and Employment at (800) 233-3212 or the Southern California Housing Rights Center at (800) 477-5977.