Difference between the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The Fair Housing Act FHA

The Fair Housing Act (FHA) was founded in 1968. This piece of legislation is designed to end discriminatory practices in any housing-related activities. The main agenda of this law is to provide equal rights and opportunities to people who suffer from disabilities and want to rent or stay on properties with their Emotional Support Animal. According to the Fair Housing Act, no one can discriminate on the basis of color, religion, sex, disability (physical or mental), national origin, and familial status.

The Goals for having an FHA

A three-part target system has been established under the Fair Housing Act. It involves putting a stop to discrimination in;

Home renting and selling

• refusing to buy, sell, or rent housing after negotiating.
• Making housing inaccessible or misrepresenting housing availability.
• Housing refusal
• varied terms or conditions for renting or selling homes.
• Offering many housing options or amenities.
• Refusing to use housing-related services (such as a Multiple Listing Service).

Mortgage Lending

• Avoids taking out or buying a home loan.
• Imposing various loan terms or circumstances, such as fees or interest rates.
• Establishing various criteria for obtaining a loan.
• Refusing to make the loan’s details accessible.
• Procedures that are discriminatory when valuing real estate.

Additional Illegal Practice

• Advertise your property or make discriminatory statements expressing a preference for people from a particular background or excluding a protected class. This applies to people and properties that are generally exempt from the Fair Housing Act, such as four-unit owner-occupied residences.
• Threaten or hinder anyone’s right to fair housing.

The Fair Housing Act gives emotional support animals special rights and privileges when it comes to apartments, rental homes, etc. How? People with mental and emotional disabilities are protected by the Fair Housing Act, which also permits them to live with service and emotional support animals. Even though a location is designated as “no pets,” the law requires apartment buildings, landlords, and condo associations to accept humans and their ESA. Although they are not specially trained to perform a service, emotional support animals or comfort animals are essential for persons with mental illnesses to help them cope with their handicaps. To see whether you’re qualified for the Fair Housing Act, you need to have an ESA letter with you. Follow three simple steps if you want your ESA letter in your hand. For that, you need to visit the Fast ESA letter website and follow the three simple steps which will help you to take advantage of the Fair Housing Act. These steps include: Apply Online Firstly you need to click on the apply now button and fill up the application form by mentioning all the details. After that, you have to submit your application form. Evaluation At the time of evaluation, you have to wait for some time till the licensed mental health professional evaluates your application. If the application gets approved, you can get your ESA letter. Receive an ESA letter Once everything is done, you will receive your ESA letter. You can download it and save it to show it to your landlord anytime.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA is a civil rights law established to safeguard people with disabilities in all spheres of public and private life, in contrast to the Fair Housing Act, which addresses areas of real estate ownership and leasing. These consist of the following;

• Employment
• Transportation
• Education
• All the places covered which are open to the general public

The ADA’s goal is to guarantee that people with physical or mental impairments get the same treatment as non-disabled people. Based on their website; “On January 1, 2009, the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) went into effect after being enacted in 2008. The definition of “disability” underwent a number of important revisions under the ADAAA. Title I of the ADA (employment practices of private employers with 15 or more employees, state and local governments, employment agencies, labor unions, agents of the employer, and joint management labor committees), Title II (programs and activities of state and local government entities), Title III (private entities that are considered places of public accommodation) are all affected by the changes in the definition of disability in the ADAAA.