Here’s your answer to that question:
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Aside from the fact that not all vaction rentals fall under the definition of “public accommodation” - which means the ADA does not apply to them. But if it does apply, there are exceptions to the law. One of those exceptions is if compliance would cause an undue hardship on the owner. Another exception is if compliance will fundamentally alter the nature of the business.
The law is most definitely not black and white. Even with employers, there are exceptions if they cannot make accommodations because it would cause too much of an undue hardship.
A hardship to one person, is a reasonable accommodation to another.
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So if you list your space as “allergy friendly”, you are allowed to refuse any kind of pets, because it goes against the nature of your business.
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Probably unwise to list your place as allergy friendly; no doubt that’s an open goal for a guest who wants to test you and your listing.
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Spending extra time cleaning is not an undue hardship. An undue hardship would be more on the lines of having to remodel the house to accommodate a wheelchair. I can’t imagine how having a guest bring a service dog would fundamentally alter the nature of the business.
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There is no such thing as allergy friendly as people can be allergic to literally anything.
If there isn’t case law already established, I would say an attorney could attempt to make a good argument if the owner specifically goes out of his way to target families who need a safe place to stay. Although, keep in mind with off site properties there is never a guarantee that someone won’t sneak their little dog into a bag.
Another thing to consider is that it’s very costly to have to hire an attorney if you are reported for violating the ADA. Even if you were found to abide by the laws, it’s likely you already would have hired an attorney to help you while the situation is being investigated.
Below is a link from a realtor who manages vacation rentals. It’s an interesting read. Since you cannot limit a service dog to only “pet-friendly” rentals, this guy offers three kinds: pet - friendly, non pet -friendly that make exceptions for service dogs, and pet - free. He discusses his justifications for it and the reason being undue hardship.
I was merely stating that there are exceptions and that an undue hardship for one, is a reasonable accommodation for another.
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I copied and pasted this excerpt from the link I posted earlier. The realtor in the article does not support his argument with case law or anything; however, he explains why in some cases it would be an undue hardship on the owner - not just simple cleaning up a few dog hairs.
"As a licensed Real Estate company in North Carolina, we have a duty to our clients to protect their properties and ensure they get paid for the use of their properties. Our company offers three types of pet/allergen properties for vacation rental use: Pet Friendly (anyone can bring a pet by paying a pet fee and TRUE Service Animals do not pay a pet fee), No Pets (guests may not bring pets to the owner’s property, but the owners might, however TRUE Service Animals are allowed and do not pay a pet fee), and Pet Free (the property is guaranteed to be free any pet allergens for all guests and the owner, animals are never allowed, Service Animals are not permitted per the law). When a property is a “Pet Free” property, the laws protect the property owner from having to endure an “unreasonable accommodation” for allowing the service animal. Our Pet Free properties are guaranteeing the property owner, and future guests, that may have extreme medical issues regarding animal allergies; that the property will be free of these allergens. Just as some people require a service/assistance animal for medical or mental purposes; some people have debilitating medical reactions to animal dander or hair, which is why “Pet Free” properties are identified. The cost of bringing a “Pet Free” property back to “Pet Free” status is a very unreasonable burden to a property owner. It can include a deep cleaning fee ($200 to $700), carpet cleaning the entire property ($85 to $500), laundering all bedding; blankets, comforters, mattress pads, etc ($100 to $500), cleaning of all furniture, sofas, fabric covered items, curtains, etc. ($100 to $1000), and more depending on the property. These items would have to be performed in order to assure the medical safety of future guests, or the owner, that have been guaranteed a “Pet Free”/pet dander free environment. They would have to be performed between the last guest checking out and the next guest checking in (usually 6 hours or less), which usually can’t happen due to the time of services required for this work and would cause the property owner to lose future rents in addition to the cleaning expenses. Because of this, we can not allow any animals into a Pet Free property, regardless of their work, certifications, status, disabilities, etc. The law protects property owners from unreasonable burdens.
Luckily, we offer a large number of properties that do allow pets and service/assistance animals. We welcome them with open arms into these properties. We even have “check-in” gifts for our four legged vacationers; service animal or pet. We only have two fair requests of our guests; 1) don’t try to pass your Pet off as a Service/Assistance Animal if it is not, a 10 minute online application and $65.00+ fee does not pass and is insulting to pets/owners that earned it through months to years of hard work and training. 2) Don’t expect a property owner to pay or lose an additional $485 to $10,000+ for your TRUE Service/Assistance Animal; that’s not what the laws intended nor state. We will do our best to find a property that works for you at no additional charges for your working animal and know that we have the utmost respect for training and hard work this animal has received."
there must be flats and condos listed on Airbnb in America where the building management has a blanket ban on animals. That certainly happens here. What happens in those situations?
So why do I occasionally get requests from guests for “low allergy” rooms, if it does not exists?
A lot of hotels offer them, so there is a market for them.
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The Americans with Disabilities Act is Federal Law. As such, it trumps building bans on animals.
What posters here appear to fail to understand is that service animals are not pets. They perform life saving and/or ability enhancing functions for the owner. These animals are medical devices. They can detect seizures, blood sugar changes, pick up objects for people who can’t, navigate for blind people, etc. I had a coworker who had a blood disease that caused her to fall down. She got a service Saint Bernard who would lie down under her when she was falling. It’s like if a building had a ban on drugs; they wouldn’t be able to ban prescription medication.
I find it disheartening that posters on this board wouldn’t embrace the opportunity to provide a travel experience for someone who wasn’t letting their disability stop them from living life to the fullest.
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I just looked up allergy friendly rooms. The Hilton treats their heaters and air conditioners in their allergy friendly rooms with tea tree oil. I am allergic to tea tree oil. It gives me hives if it touches my skin which means that I am truly allergic, not just irritated by the nasty smell.
I don’t think people are failing to understand the role that service animals play in their owners lives. It’s the fact that they’re still animals, and not everyone wants animals in their home for reasons stated numerous times in this thread.
I would much rather have teatree oil in my home, than have to deal with pet dander.
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And yet people wonder why Airbnb found it necessary to institute a non-discrimination policy.
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I guess they did it because it’s the law?
IMHO there are bigger fish to fry when it comes to discrimination …
I feel sympathy for many hosts … even though I’m personally not affected.
I can’t imagine a “bigger fish to fry” when it comes to discrimination than people with disabilities.
Sorry … I guess we’re going to have to disagree on whether being allowed to bring an animal into someone’s private residence is truly the biggest priority in relation to discrimination.
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If you live in the listing; I assume that you can put in your house rules that you can’t accommodate service (whatever you’re allergic to). However, I would assume that if the service animal is low dander you would be obligated to accept him/her.
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Possible. I guess it’s hypothetical in my case as I’m never going to deal with a service animal.
I’ve always dreamed of having a schnauzer, I understand they’re a great breed when it comes to low dander.