March 2024 Coach’s Quiz

QUESTION #1

In response to a neighbor’s complaints about odors coming from a tenant’s apartment, you reenter the unit and discover stacks of moldy newspapers, open food containers, unwashed clothing, and other debris strewn about, including in places where they obstruct windows and emergency exits. What should you do?

a.         Immediately evict the tenant for creating a nuisance and danger to health, safety, and sanitation

b.         Initiate an eviction action while being on the alert for accommodations requests

c.          Let the problem slide because the tenant might be suffering from a hoarding disorder

QUESTION #2

Same scenario as in Question #1 but assume the tenant requests an accommodation for her hoarding disorder. She then signs a reasonable accommodation agreement promising to totally clean up her mess within two months and maintain the apartment in a clean and sanitary condition thereafter. In exchange, the landlord promises to temporarily forgo eviction. The tenant meets the two-month cleaning deadline and keeps her apartment clean and tidy for another three months after that. But then she relapses and resorts to her old hoarding habits. Can the landlord evict her? 

a.         Yes, because she’s already gotten one second chance

b.         No, because the tenant is still entitled to reasonable accommodations

c.          Yes, but only if the landlord determines that the tenant’s continued occupancy constitutes a direct threat and there are no reasonable alternative accommodations

COACH’S ANSWERS & EXPLANATIONS

QUESTION #1

Correct answer: b

Reason: Steps #1 and #2 apply here:

Step 1. Be Aware that Hoarding Disorder Is a Disability

Step 2. Initiate Legal Action But Be on Alert for Accommodations Requests

Landlords don’t have to offer or provide accommodations unless and until tenants or their representatives request them. But you and your staff need to understand that people with a hoarding disorder often seek to conceal their problem. That doesn’t mean they can’t or won’t request accommodations. But they may not do it in a way people with other disabilities do. Instead of saying, “I need an accommodation for a hoarding disorder,” they’re likely to frame their request as something they “need” or “want” because of their problem. While subtle and indirect, this may be enough to constitute a valid accommodation request. As HUD guidelines explain, all a person has to do to make a reasonable accommodation request is make it clear to the housing provider that they’re requesting an exception, change, or adjustment to a policy, practice, or rule because of a disability. That’s why you and your staff need to be extra sensitive and tuned in when pursuing legal action against a hoarder. So, b is the right answer.

Wrong answers explained:

a. is wrong because the tenant might be suffering from hoarding disorder, which is a mental disability requiring reasonable accommodations under fair housing laws. So, immediate and automatic eviction of tenants for engaging in hoarding is a liability risk.

c. is wrong because even if the tenant does have a hoarding disorder, the duty to make reasonable accommodations doesn’t require you to tolerate significant lease violations that threaten the health and safety of others. The key is to recognize that the tenant may have a mental disability and be prepared to engage in the accommodations process as necessary.  

QUESTION #2

Correct answer: c

Reason: Steps #4, #8, and #9 apply here:

Step 4. Determine If the Requested Accommodation Is Reasonable

Step 8. Consider Giving Previous Offenders Third & Even Fourth Chances

Step 9. Consider Alternatives If Requested Accommodations Are Unreasonable

Because people with hoarding disorders have high rates of recidivism, tenants with whom you’ve previously concluded successful reasonable accommodation agreements may relapse and request further accommodations later. Treat these subsequent accommodations requests the same way you treated the original request, starting with determining whether the new request is reasonable. But during this round you’re allowed to factor the previous experience into the equation. The fact that the tenant failed to keep her promise to keep the unit clean once doesn’t automatically prove that she’d do so again. But it is evidence that giving her another second chance won’t work. And if the state of the apartment is unhealthy and dangerous enough, the enhanced risk of noncompliance also gives you stronger grounds for relying on the direct threat rule to deny the requested accommodation. Finally, keep in mind that even if you conclude that the requested accommodation isn’t reasonable you still have to consider whether any reasonable alternatives exist.

Wrong answers explained:

a.         The reason a. is wrong is that there’s no rule that says a landlord need accommodate a hoarding disorder, or any other disability, only once. While previous accommodations made for the same tenant for the same disability may factor into the assessment, they don’t definitively determine whether the subsequently requested accommodation is or isn’t reasonable.

b.         The statement that the tenant is still entitled to reasonable accommodations is true. The reason b. is the wrong answer is that being entitled to reasonable accommodations doesn’t definitively preclude eviction. It just means that the landlord must engage its accommodations protocols before deciding whether to proceed with the eviction action.