No. Under federal fair housing rules a landlord may not ask whether an applicant, anyone who will live in the unit or anyone associated with them has a disability, or how severe it is. Five narrow questions are allowed if asked of every applicant. A tenant's request for an accommodation follows separate rules. This is information, not legal advice.
What does federal law say about disability questions?
The rule is in HUD's regulation, 24 CFR 100.202(c). It is unlawful to make an inquiry to determine whether an applicant, a person intending to live in the dwelling, or anyone associated with them has a handicap (the regulation's word for disability), or to ask about the nature or severity of one. The Fair Housing Act behind it, 42 U.S.C. 3604(f), bars refusing to rent or setting different terms because of a disability of the renter, a household member or an associate.
That covers more than a checkbox. "Do you take any medications?", "Can you manage stairs?" and "Is that your caregiver?" are all inquiries into a disability.
Which questions are allowed?
The same regulation lists five, and each must be asked of all applicants, whether or not they have a disability:
- Whether the applicant can meet the requirements of the tenancy, such as paying rent and following the lease.
- Whether the applicant qualifies for a unit reserved for people with disabilities, or a particular type.
- Whether the applicant qualifies for a priority offered to people with disabilities.
- Whether the applicant currently uses illegal controlled substances.
- Whether the applicant has been convicted of illegally making or distributing a controlled substance.
Note the word current in question four. The HUD and Department of Justice joint statement of May 14, 2004 says the Act protects people recovering from substance abuse and does not protect current illegal use.
What about requests for a reasonable accommodation?
When a tenant or applicant asks for a change to a rule or policy because of a disability, such as an assigned parking space or an assistance animal in a no pets building, the conversation changes. The joint statement says there must be an identifiable relationship, or nexus, between the request and the disability, and it recommends talking through alternatives when a request is not reasonable. Keep any follow-up question to that link, never a diagnosis.
Two limits matter at the application stage. The joint statement says a provider may not refuse residency, or add conditions, because someone may need an accommodation later. And the accommodation duty does not apply to an owner-occupied building of four or fewer units. Physical changes to the unit are a separate rule; see our guide to reasonable modification requests, and for animals, our assistance animal rules.
Can a Canadian landlord ask about disability?
In Ontario, no. The Ontario Human Rights Commission lists disability among the grounds on which nobody may be refused an apartment, and says Regulation 290/98 permits no inquiries beyond rental history, credit, income and a guarantor. When a tenant shares medical information to support an accommodation, the landlord must keep it private. Other provinces have their own human rights codes with disability as a ground, so the same caution applies.
Where does this go wrong in practice?
In an address. The joint statement's own example: an applicant lists her current home as a group home for women in treatment for alcoholism, and the manager rejects her on that alone, expecting trouble. That is unlawful stereotyping. The manager could have checked her references the same way as anyone else's, and acted only on objective evidence of recent conduct. The same trap opens on the phone when someone hears a mention of a wheelchair or a support worker and starts asking follow-up questions nobody else gets.
The fix is a written set of qualifying questions, the same for everyone, with accommodation requests routed to a person. LetHub is AI leasing software for property managers: it answers rental inquiries by text, chat, email and phone in about 30 seconds, day and night, qualifies renters, books tours and runs ID-verified self-showings, asking every prospect only the questions you wrote. For the criteria themselves, see our fair-housing screening checklist. Book a demo to see it on your listings.
Disability and rental applications: FAQ
Can a landlord ask if an applicant can live independently?
No. That is an inquiry into the nature of a disability. A landlord may ask, of everyone, whether the applicant can meet the lease terms, such as paying rent and keeping the unit in good condition.
Can a landlord charge more because a tenant may need an accommodation?
No. The joint statement says a provider may not place conditions on residency because a person may require an accommodation, and its group-home example names a higher deposit or extra documents as unlawful different treatment.
Can a landlord deny an applicant who is in recovery?
Not for being in recovery. Federal guidance protects people recovering from substance abuse. Current illegal drug use is not protected, and a landlord may ask every applicant about it.
Do these rules apply to a small landlord?
Mostly. The accommodation duty does not reach owner-occupied buildings of four or fewer units. Everyone else, including a property manager acting for an owner, should assume the disability rules apply, and state law can add duties.
