New Fair Housing Resources Now Available

The National Apartment Association (NAA) continues to lead the way as the premier resource for housing industry professionals with the latest release of two important fair housing toolkits. In August, NAA unveiled two new resources, the NAA Emotional Support Animal (ESA) Toolkit – 2022 Edition and the NAA Accessible Design and Construction Toolkit, to assist industry practitioners as they navigate the complex regulatory landscape associated with fair housing compliance. More on the toolkits, including a recording from the virtual kick off event, presentation slides and how to purchase the toolkits, can be found here:

View the presentation slides

The most requested accommodation is for a housing provider to allow an assistance animal that would normally be prohibited to reside with the resident. These accommodation requests bring complexity to the leasing process and can expose housing providers to potential fair housing compliance risk. The NAA Emotional Support Animal Toolkit – 2022 Edition has been developed and enhanced to inform industry professionals of their fair housing obligations when an applicant or resident requests an assistance animal. The toolkit also offers support for navigating fraudulent requests for emotional support animals, contains sample leasing forms, troubleshoots common ESA-related scenarios, and so much more. 

As lawmakers focus their attention on building codes and enact policy that more stringently regulates building design, it will be critical for housing providers to understand the importance of creating accessible communities. The NAA Accessible Design and Construction Toolkit educates industry professionals on their fair housing responsibilities which require rental housing providers to keep their physical properties accessible to disabled persons. 

NAA is proud to offer these toolkits as a commitment to understanding and complying with fair housing law. Our industry strongly supports the rights of persons with disabilities to make reasonable accommodation requests so they may have equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling. 

See more information and purchase the toolkits

Note: You must create an account to purchase the toolkits. Click “Sign Up” on the Login Page and select the “Emotional Support Animal and Accessibility” User Group. When prompted to select your company, use the drop down menu to select your local apartment association or select NAA if you are not a member locally. Please be patient with us as NAA staff must approve every account. Our goal is a less than 24-hour turnaround.

For more information on the Emotional Support Animal and Accessible Design and Construction Toolkits, please contact Nicole Upano, AVP of Housing Policy and Regulatory Affairs.