Play by the fair-housing rules, even on weekly rentals
Question: I own a lakeside cottage that I rent out on a weekly basis throughout the year. Do any fair-housing laws apply for this type of rental?
Answer: The simple and safe answer to this question is yes, all fair-housing laws apply to this rental situation.
There are two main pieces of California legislation that outlaw discrimination in housing. The first is the Unruh Act, which applies to business establishments. If you believe that the term “business establishment” does not apply to renting out your cottage for a few weeks during the summer, be advised that the California Supreme Court is required to apply the Unruh Act “in the broadest sense reasonably possible.”
The second major piece of antidiscriminatory California legislation, the Fair Employment and Housing Act, applies to all owners, thus eliminating any controversy over the definition of “business establishment.”
There is a narrow exception: Discrimination laws do not apply when renting a portion of an owner-occupied, single-family house to no more than one roomer or boarder living within the household.
Therefore, the best advice would be to rent out your cottage in compliance with all fair-housing laws as if it were a more longer-term rental.
Your local fair-housing agency can help answer any questions about whether specific actions and specific types of housing are covered under state and federal fair-housing laws.
Special treatment for disabled tenant
Question: To keep rents as low as possible for my tenants, I ask them to do very light yard cleanup in their area. For the most part, they are cooperative. A new tenant has objected to doing this work by stating she is disabled and can’t do any type of manual labor. If I allow this one tenant not to do her area, will I be discriminating against my other tenants?
Answer: Under state and federal fair-housing laws, disabled tenants are entitled to some special treatment, called “reasonable accommodations” or “reasonable modifications,” in order to allow equal access to housing opportunities.
“Reasonable accommodations” are changes or exceptions to normal business policies or practices that would allow a person with a disability equal enjoyment of a dwelling.
A disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment that limits at least one major life activity, such as caring for oneself, walking, seeing, hearing, learning or working. The laws also protect people who once had a disability or who are regarded by others as having a disability.
When a tenant requests special treatment because of a disability, you can ask for a letter from his or her healthcare professional, physical therapist or other person with knowledge of the disability, stating the specific limitations imposed by the disability. If the tenant can thus show that an exemption from manual labor is necessary to accommodate the tenant’s disability, then you are obligated to assess whether this exemption would be reasonable.
“Reasonable” means that it would not impose an undue financial or administrative burden on you, although you may be required to bear some cost.
If the request is reasonable, you may grant it for this tenant without fear that you will be discriminating against your other tenants. If the request is too costly or burdensome, you are still obligated to discuss alternatives with the tenant in an effort to find a reasonable way to accommodate his or her disability. You can always contact your local fair housing agency for more information.
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.
