ADA Compliance for HOA

Obviously you need to discuss with an attorney. However, my understanding is that such an ADA request generally must be accommodated, but at the homeowner’s expenses. It is also possible that their intention to move within a few months might be something courts would take into account when evaluating the reasonableness of the accommodation request.

Did the homeowner make a written request, citing fair housing laws?

David is correct. Fair Housing laws require a *reasonable* accommodation that meets the owner's needs. However, the owner is required to pay for it, not the association. In addition, the association is not obligated to give the owner their preferred accommodation, only a reasonable one that meets their need.

Definitely talk to your association's attorney. Ours handled our requests for accommodations, including verifying that the need actually exists and then making a recommendation to the board. The recommendation also included instructions not to slow roll the process, since delaying tactics are also Fair Housing violations.

I mention the slow rolling because of the short time frame. However, even without slow rolling it's likely that the verification of need, approvals for whatever construction is needed, plus actual construction will not happen before this owner moves out. That plus the fact that the owner must foot the bills for construction may change their mind.

I also wonder what has changed if this owner has been living in the community without requesting accommodations prior to this. Of course the new house could have a number of disability features, so the timing may make sense.

It sounded from the OP that while they have ramps in some spots, none of those spot are near the requestor's home. I think we might eventually have an issue at our mailbox clusters, where the handicapped spot would require a wheelchair to wheel onto the street in order to access the curb cutout. One of the many poorly-planned things our developer is going to leave us with...

This homeowner is moving anyway, so why can't he or she get a temporary ramp at his/her expense (yes they exist). It seems to me the homeowner would have asked about this months c ago when it became apparent a ramp would be necessary, but oh, well.

As for your parking lot's handicapped spaces being more useful, see if there's some sort of independent living organization in your area. These are nonprofit organizations that assist disabled people with getting services to help them live independently. In addition to consulting your attorney, these organizations may be able to refer you to an expert who could inspect your lot go see what improvements could be made to those spots.

That said, you might not always be able to put a space right in front of the owner's house, but should get it as close as possible. In our community, we had an incident where the homeowner spoke to a neighbor whose spot was closer to her home and the neighbor agreed to swap the spot. That homeowner got the space back when the first owner moved away.

As others have said, the Americans with Disabilities Act typically does not apply to Associations unless some amenity is open to the general public.

However, as others have said, the Fair Housing Act does apply.

Typically, the fair housing act follows the ADA guidelines, as Associations must approve reasonable accommodations. However, the expense for those accommodations are paid for by the requestor. The HOA can even insist that the accommodation be removed when it is no longer required (a temporary wheel chair ramp or when the house is sold as an example).

Many often confuse the application of these two laws, so it's understandable why the individual requested that the HOA pays for the ramp.

As others have said, it would be best to consult an attorney and have the attorney draft the response letter.

Hope this helps,

Tim

Some more info:

Reasonable Accommodations and Modifications from HUD (the dept. that enforces the fair housing act).

Can An HOA Deny Request For Reasonable Accommodation? article from an HOA management company

Reasonable Modifications Under the Fair Housing Act - Q & A from a legal firm