Can someone please help me regarding landlord tenant issue. I’m disabled & being charged rent for a companion?
June 23rd, 2011 | 
Author: animal. Upon move in i advised the landlord that i had a dog of which is a companion animal. He asked that i provide a letter from a doctor stating that i am disabled & my dog is a companion animal. I provided such a letter the day i moved in & the landlord told me if i wanted to move in I had to pay a $25.00 fee for rent for having my animal. I told him i thought it is illegal to charge a disabled person for having a companion animal due to their disability. He basically said if i wanted to move in i would have to pay it. I had no choice because i had already scheduled with my other landlord to be moved out on that day. I paid for a U-Haul to move my stuff, and paid transfer fees for utilities, phone, and cable. I’m on section 8 & had 30 days to find a place to live. My doctor wrote a night specifying that i had to move to a downstairs apartment because i’m having hip surgery in May & wont be able to climb stairs. I liked the apartment so i chose this place as my new residence. While i was filling out the lease the landlord started telling me about a lady who was a resident here who suffered from bipolar. He told me that she caused a lot of problems & that he’d NEVER rent to someone with bipolar ever again. Then he proceeded to ask me if i am bipolar. Of course, i said NO as i didn’t want to be denied an apartment by him. He also sent me a 3 day notice for late rent for March. I have a contract with section 8 that tells me what i’m suppose to pay every month. I told the landlord what that amount was & since i moved in on the 4th the pro-rated the rent. I was given a receipt for paying my rent & a month & a half later i get a 3 day notice on my door. Then to make things worse the landlord came to my residence yesterday, before the 3 days had expired & demanded that i pay the money by 12:00 noon. I had 2 hours to scramble around to get the money. Mind you i am disabled & have a hard time getting around due to my damaged hips & back pain. I was in tears. When i got the 3 day notice i called the office & spoke to the landlord & he started going off on me, telling me i’m not disabled and that i just want someone to support me. That i want a free ride & living off the government. He’s threatened me to call my section 8 worker & lie to her about me in hopes that she’ll take my section 8 from me. When i went in the landlord office by 11:05 a.m as instructed i was trying to write a written receipt & the landlord started in on me again…saying that i owe a different amount then what i was told by the other landlord that also runs the property. I was going to pay him what he wanted & just deal with it later so i would avoid eviction. I asked nicely if they could please write down that they were not charging me a late fee for March so that they couldn’t come back & say i owed them the money tomorrow & try to evict me again. They absolutely refused to write something for me & i told them that i’m simply doing as i was instructed to do by an attorney & he started saying I’m not scared of you guys. Meaning me & my 15 year old son that was with me at the time. Then when i kept asking & telling them i was entitled to have things in writing the landlord started threatening to evict me right then & there. They are a father son business, so i had both of them just attacking me & threatening me. (unfortunately, everything they’ve said to me is hearsay & i can’t prove it) I don’t know where i went wrong. I thought i was very professional & polite throughout this entire process, but i feel very intimidated by these men & very scared that they’ll evict me for a mundane reason. I don’t know how to defend myself against these men. They obviously have the authority & i don’t. I’m just a poor disabled single mom trying to survive. I also mentioned to him that i am disabled and that i was in a near fatal car accident in 2007 that has left me disabled. That i’ve had 3 surgeries since then & i have to have at least 4 more. I tried desperately to tell him that i’ve worked too & i would much rather be working like him then being on disability. I haven’t been able to work since the car accident. He claimed that i blamed him for my car accident when i hadn’t even met the man until a month and a half ago. He is so cruel! I have been crying a lot these last few days & feel like i have NO rights against this landlord. Please, can someone with knowledge in this area advise me on what i can do? I can’t get evicted right now when i’m having hip surgery on May 12th & i’ll need a in home health nurse for 6 months to a year. I’m feeling desperate for guidance in this situation. I’m scared! This man has it out for me & i don’t know why. He also told me that section 8 is a grant & i ought to be thankful i’m get a free handout. I tried explaining to him that i’ve worked & paid taxes too just like him. What can i do? I really thank an
Actually you’re incorrect in saying that the landlord can charge me a per deposit and or pet rent for my companion animal as directly related to my disability. I’ve already spoken with an investigator from the fair housing department, as well as the Human Rights of New mexico, and called the landlord tenant hot line. I was advised that it is in fact illegal to charge a person with a disability for pet rent or a per deposit when i’ve provided a doctors note stating why i need a companion animal. It is stated under Title 8 of the disabilities Act. You can research this if you’d like. There’s no question that the landlord is wrong for making me pay pet rent, as it is also stated in my lease that he’s unable to charge me any additional money aside from my rent because i have a companion animal that helps me with my disability.
Posted in Landlord Tenant Law
having a “companion animal” (as opposed to a service animal) is the same as having a pet. There are no laws that protect you. The landlord is within his rights to charge you a pet deposit (section 8 or not). Sorry
As for your problems with your landlord, stay away from him and pay your rent on time. He does have to right to evict you if you don’t pay your part of the rent. That is the law.
This is a business. Your landlord is not interested in your sob stories. All he wants is to make money off of his rental property. Keep your relationship with your landlord professional from now on.
Take care
First, as a person with a disability you are protected by special federal laws from such harassment. What they are threatening is called a “do-it-yourself-” eviction, which is illegal everywhere. They must go through the courts to get you out, and they know it, so stand firm. You are most certainly entitled to written receipts for any payment you make, and only a fool would hand over money to such crooks without getting one. As for the companion dog issue, any disabled person in public housing is allowed a companion pet, within reasonable guidelines. Call your Section 8 representative yourself, as your landlord is not likely to do so without getting in serious trouble with them. The next time it happens, call the police and report the landlords for abuse. The police will advise them of the laws and that it is a civil matter to be taken to court, not handled on their own. And consult an attorney.
It is not illegal to ask for a pet deposit from a tenant whether disabled or not. Usually pet deposits are $100 or $200. Secondly, you were late on your rent for some reason so he gave you a 3-day court eviction which is perfectly legal. You should have called your case worker who handles your apartment building right away. Call her or him immediately and ask what to do. Your landlord really is giving you a hard time. Maybe he had a lot of bad Sec 8 tenants and is taking it all out on you. He should not be a Section 8 landlord if he does not like Sec 8 people.
He cannot just give you a 3 day notice to vacant. He would have to file an eviction through the court. Pay the amount stated on your lease amendment by money order or check so you can have proof. If he tries to charge you more than the stated amount, report him to your Section 8 office. Because it is illegal to pay more or for him to collect more than the stated amount. Some landlord requires a pet deposit … Read your lease. It should be stated in your lease. You can also call HUD.