It is pretty common for regulatory agencies, inspectors, and auditors to misunderstand the several accessibilities ADA and Fair Housing laws. Multifamily owners or landlords sometimes find themselves disorderly due to a misinterpretation of the laws and they may spend thousands of dollars fixing an issue that does not even exist.
Site managers, multifamily professionals, owners, and operators must know the regulations that apply to their property to evade a fair housing lawsuit, penalty, or fine. The first step is to understand the period when the property was constructed and whether a federal subsidy or regulatory applies to it or not.
In this article, we will discuss some of the misconceptions of the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), the Fair Housing Act, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 concerning the accessibility at multifamily properties.
Properties should have ADA Units
Having mandatory ADA units is a misconception. There are no residential properties that have ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act) units. The Americans With Disabilities Act applies to public accommodations. For instance, hotel rooms, convention centers, restaurants, convenience stores, government-owned housing such as university dorm rooms, etc. Thus, the ADA law does not apply to the residential units.
But, the ADA applies to the parking zones of the leasing offices. The act claims that a specific amount of accessible parking spaces should be van-accessible. The entranceway for a van-accessible space should be 8 feet wide or 96 inches. The standard entranceway has to be five feet wide or 60 inches.
Section 504 is Applied to Every Property with Government Subsidies
The requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 were implemented in 1982, for recently built Rural Development properties and in 1988, for the HUD (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) properties. Properties constructed under these programs before dates are not obligated to provide 5% fully accessible units and 2% visually and hearing impaired units, until and unless substantially restored. Properties built before those dates are urged to provide 5% completely accessible units during rehabilitation, renovation, or repair.
Also, Section 504 requires the common areas to be fully available. If the property was constructed before the implementation dates, the landlord is under no responsibility to make the common areas or residential units available. The Fair Housing laws need the landlord to get reasonable modifications or adjustments if requested by the resident or applicant.
The Fair Housing Amendments Act doesn’t Differentiate Between Adaptable and Accessible Units
The FHAA (Fair Housing Amendments Act) of 1988 combined disability and family situations as federally protected categories. The Fair Housing Amendments Act claims that buildings constructed after 13 March 1991, be built with 7 specific design specialties. Every ground-floor unit and elevator unit buildings must be adaptable. The common areas should be completely accessible.
Conclusion
Understanding the fact behind the misconceptions will empower multifamily properties to endure in full compliance and avoid an expensive Fair Housing lawsuit.
For more information regarding the ADA and Fair Housing Laws, join the Compliance Prime webinar.
