Service Animals Versus Shareholders with Severe Allergies

Aug. 11, 2015 — Speaking of subletting a co-op apartment, check out this one couple's quandary. The pair want to sublet the place for a year while they are out of the country. The problem is that the building allows pets, including service animals, and the husband has severe allergies to animals. Should someone with a pet rent the apartment, it would mean having to professionally clean all the furnishings, "including Oriental rugs." They ask Ronda Kaysen in this week's Ask Real Estate column in The New York Times what restrictions, if any, they may put on animals. Kaysen replies, "Just because your building is pet-friendly does not mean you have to be. Simply advertise your sublet as a 'no-pet' rental and screen prospective subtenants carefully. Include a provision in the sublease that clearly explains the rule and your reasoning." Of course, if a potential subtenant requests permission to bring along a service animal "as a reasonable accommodation for a disability," then the husband's disability — severe allergies — would factor into a court's decision. "If accommodating a pet would aggravate your husband's disability," explains Kaysen, "it is unlikely that a court would consider a request for a service animal as a reasonable accommodation."