PHA Not Required to Include Reasonable Accommodation Language in Lease Itself

Facts: A resident who has lived at a site managed by a local PHA for over 10 years sued the PHA, claiming that the PHA, as his landlord, attempted to have him sign a “lease that doesn’t have in it the accommodation for people with disabilities which is HUD regulation that is suppose[d] to be put in the lease.” The PHA asked the court for a judgment without a trial in its favor.

Ruling: A Mississippi district court granted the PHA’s request.

Reasoning: The omitted section of the resident’s lease form related to reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities. The PHA removed this section from all leases because this section “contained language that was repetitive of language contained in much more extensive policies that [the PHA] provides [in] a reasonable accommodation packet” given to tenants.

The PHA has submitted relevant portions of the packet, as well as the resident’s discovery responses in which he admits that he received the packet. The failure to include the reasonable accommodation information in the lease itself does not violate any HUD or other regulation, and the resident didn’t otherwise claim that he requested a reasonable accommodation that was denied.

·       Blakney v. Mississippi Regional PHA, June 2017