Fair Housing Laws May Apply When Evicting a Tenant Hoarder

By DANIEL BORNSTEIN, ESQ.

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When we commence an unlawful detainer action in hoarding situations, it is not uncommon that we receive notification from the tenant’s attorney that the hoarding tenant is disabled and requests “reasonable accommodations” for the disabled tenant. Landlords and property managers can easily teeter on the lines of a fair housing violation if they don’t handle the problem correctly.

First some backdrop.

Bay Area property owners have long dealt with pack rats that have a lot of stuff, or tenants that get careless or clumsy sometimes – the problem is nothing new. But popularized TV shows like Hoarders and other media attention has put more severe hoarding in the spotlight. This has paved the way for the American Psychiatric Association to classify hoarding as a documented mental illness, thereby catapulting those with hoarding disorder to a protected class.

With hoarding now officially considered a mental disorder, landlords and property managers must handle its occurrence in their buildings with sensitivity and extra caution. Given the shocking conditions and squalor associated with hoarding, it would seem that eviction proceedings are sure to be a breeze, right? To the contrary, Fair Housing laws muddle the case.

For example, we were retained in a hoarding case that did not resolve itself after the rental property owner’s good-faith attempts to correct the behavior. We served a 10-Day Notice to Cure or Quit. The Notice alleged the tenant “failed to maintain the premises in a clean and sanitary condition” and that the client had “such an accumulation of clutter that ingress and egress is impossible in the event of emergency.” Of chief concern was access to the heating system.

In turn, our office received notification from the tenant’s attorney that cited the hoarding disability. The tenant’s counsel asked us to stay the unlawful detainer in order to buy more time. The gentleman needed more time to remove excessive possessions from his home and allow Adult Protective Services to work with him in bringing his rental unit up to compliance.

The eviction was paused and we we are negotiating a settlement whereby the tenant promised to correct the behavior and barring that, the eviction would resume on the grounds of violating the settlement agreement.

We’ve only scratched the surface here and can expound on Fair Housing laws and what constitutes a “reasonable” accommodation under the law, but suffice it to say this is a tricky area best journeyed with Bornstein Law.

 

 

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As the founding attorney of Bornstein Law, Broker of Record for Bay Property Group and expert witness, Daniel Bornstein is a foremost and well-respected expert in landlord-tenant disputes and other property management issues with over 23 years of experience in handling real estate and civil litigation related disputes in and throughout the Bay Area. More than a litigator, Daniel manages rental properties, assists in completing real estate transactions and is well known for his educational seminars. He is always eager to answer questions and engage with Bay Area landlords, property owners and real estate professionals. Email him today.