Code of Virginia § 51.5-45. Right of persons with disabilities to housing accommodations.

334 words·~2 min read·/va/title-51-5/chapter-9/51-5-45

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

A. All persons with disabilities unrelated to their ability to acquire, rent, or maintain property shall be entitled to full and equal opportunity to acquire, as other members of the general public, any housing accommodations offered for sale, rent, lease, or compensation, subject to the conditions and limitations established by law and applying alike to all persons. "Housing accommodations" for the purpose of this section means any real property, or portion thereof, which is used or occupied or is intended, arranged, or designed to be used or occupied, as the home, residence, or sleeping place of one or more human beings but does not include any single family residence the occupant or owner of which rents, leases, or furnishes for compensation not more than one room therein.

B. Every visually impaired person who has a guide dog, every person who is deaf or hard of hearing and has a hearing dog, and every mobility-impaired or otherwise disabled person with a service dog shall be entitled to full and equal access with such dog to all housing accommodations provided for in this section. He shall not be required to pay extra compensation for such dog but shall be liable for any damage done to the premises by such dog.

C. Nothing in this section shall require any person offering for sale, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to modify that real property or provide a higher degree of care for a person with a disability than for a person who is not disabled, except as provided in § 36-99.5 , nor shall anything in this section require any person who is selling, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to sell, rent, lease, or provide such property to any person who would constitute a direct threat to the property or safety of others.

Code 1950, § 63.1-171.7; 1972, c. 156; 1979, c. 207; 1984, c. 753; 1985, c. 421, § 51.01-45; 1987, c. 500; 2014, c. 616 ; 2019, c. 288 .