Overview

In California HOAs, emotional support animals (sometimes referred to as ESAs) are not pets. Even though they are not trained service animals, the law classifies them as assistance animals that must be accommodated when basic requirements are met. This Fact Sheet outlines the limited paperwork an HOA may request for an emotional support animal, flags unlawful demands, clarifies control rules and access, and includes a few practical tips you can use in the moment. Homeowners who understand these limits are better positioned to protect their rights and stop board overreach.

For a deeper dive into this topic, see my full article: “Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals in California HOAs: Your Rights.” For a quick-reference guide on service animals in California HOAs, read my Fact Sheet “California HOAs and Service Animals: What Boards Can and Cannot Require.”

You can also watch an episode of my podcast (HOA HELL), “California HOAs: Service Animals, Emotional Support Animals, and What Homeowners Must Know,” where I discuss these and other related issues.

Key Points

Use this checklist to understand the lawful role of a California HOA when it comes to emotional support animals, and as a reminder of a few things you can do to protect your rights.

• Emotional support animals are assistance animals, not pets. They provide comfort and stability that helps manage a medical or psychological condition, and boards cannot treat them like ordinary pets.                                                                                                    
• Limited paperwork may be requested. Boards can require a letter from a licensed medical or mental health professional confirming that the homeowner has a condition and that the animal helps alleviate its effects. [If you click on the main article linked above, you’ll find a model letter that your medical professional can write to your HOA to satisfy the letter requirement.] HOAs cannot, however, require medical records, diagnostic codes, therapy notes, or detailed personal information. They cannot demand “extra verification,” require a second opinion, or insist on official registration or certification.
• No deposits, rent, or pet rules. Emotional support animals are also exempt from otherwise enforceable pet deposits, fees, breed bans, weight limits, or limits on the number of pets.
• Illegal board demands are common. Emotional support animals are the source of a lot disputes between homeowners and their HOAs because most board members are ignorant of the rules surrounding assistance animals.
• Control rules apply. Emotional support animals must always be tethered in HOA common areas, must respond to their handler, cannot be left to roam, and must not bark excessively, lunge, or act aggressively. Cleanup rules also apply.
• Access to common areas is absolute. Emotional support animals, as assistance animals, must be allowed anywhere their owner is permitted to go, including gyms, pools, and clubhouses. “No pets” policies do not apply.
• ADA usually does not govern inside HOAs. Fair-housing law controls most HOA scenarios. The Americans with Disabilities Act apply only if the HOA’s facilities are opened to the general public.
• Create a paper trail. If the board overreaches, decline politely, put everything in writing, and save all correspondence. Documenting the overreach strengthens your position if you need to escalate.
• Stand your ground (if you feel up to it). If you’re ever told to leave a common area by a board member or manager, stay calm, but refuse. State that your animal is an emotional support animal, and as such, is legally considered an assistance animal. Further explain that your emotional support animal is legally permitted to go wherever you are permitted to go. If you have your letter, offer to show it. And then remind them that extra medical records, registrations, or fees are not legal. Do not engage with uninvolved residents who lack authority. Stand your ground. You are not trespassing, nor are you the one violating the law.

Emotional support animals carry real legal protections in California HOAs. Although a board’s authority over emotional support animals is intentionally more limited than that of service animals, their role is still rather narrow (especially as compared to regular pets). If the board tries to demand more than a simple letter, applies pet rules, or threatens fees, they are violating the law, and you do not have to comply.

FAQs

About MBK Chapman Fact Sheets

Homeowners searching for answers online will often come across articles that appear authoritative, but are actually written as search-engine marketing content rather than by an experienced HOA lawyer. These pieces tend to prioritize keyword density over clarity, accuracy, or legal context, which often leaves homeowners more confused than informed.

At MBK Chapman, our Fact Sheets are part of our HOA Law Library and are written by Michael Kushner, an HOA lawyer with decades of hands-on experience representing California homeowners. In fact, Michael Kushner is the HOA lawyer who pioneered the systems and strategies used by some of California’s most successful homeowner-side HOA law firms.

Each Fact Sheet is deliberately concise, statute-based, and designed as a quick-reference guide to help homeowners understand key HOA laws and enforcement rules at a glance.

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