Many POAs have questions about how they can address hoarding by a homeowner in the community. Unfortunately, the best path forward is not always clear. In addition to the limitations of a POA’s governing documents, the Fair Housing Act (the “FHA”) may also come into play, further muddying the waters. This article will give a broad overview of the issue, but POAs should consult with their attorney if issues related to hoarding arise in their community.
What is Hoarding?
The Mayo Clinic describes hoarding as “an ongoing difficulty throwing away or parting with possessions because you believe that you need to save them. You may experience distress at the thought of getting rid of the items. You gradually keep or gather a huge number of items, regardless of their actual value.”
In extreme cases, as documented through various news reports and reality tv shows, the items being hoarded can take up every surface of a home and can extend to storage areas outside. The behavior may also extend to hoarding animals. All of this could result in health, sanitation, and safety issues for the community, leading a POA to ask how they can get involved.
Is Hoarding Protected Under the Fair Housing Act?
Hoarding is a relatively new disorder in the public conscience. The American Psychological Association (APA) only gave hoarding diagnostic criteria in 2013. This means diagnosed hoarding is considered to be a mental illness.
The FHA defines “persons with a disability” to mean “those individuals with mental or physical impairments that substantially limit one or more major life activities.” The term “major life activity” may include seeing, hearing, walking, breathing, performing manual tasks, caring for one’s self, learning, speaking, or working. The FHA also protects persons who have a record of such an impairment, or are regarded as having such an impairment.
Based on the FHA’s broad definition, there is a possibility that a person who is engaging in hoarding behaviors may be considered a person with a disability. Accordingly, the POA should work closely with an attorney to ensure the POA is complying with the FHA when taking action such as requesting supporting documentation or considering whether to grant a request for reasonable accommodation.
Options for POAs
The issue of hoarding and housing has been seen and adjudicated in a landlord tenant and multi-family setting (see Douglas v. Kreigsfeld Corp., 884 A.2d 1109 (D.C. 2005)), but little has been explored in terms of POA involvement.
It is likely that POAs will become aware of homeowners’ hoarding due to reports from neighbors. This could come from someone being in the neighbor’s home, being able to see inside the home, or possibly an increase in rodents and other pests. If the reports are only because a neighbor has knowledge the homeowner is hoarding and the hoarding is not impacting the community, the POA may be best served by treating the issue as a neighbor-to-neighbor dispute.
However, if there are complaints from multiple neighbors regarding health and safety concerns such as increased rodent and pest activity, or if the hoarding has spread to the yard or other exterior portions of the homeowner’s lot, the POA may decide to get involved.
As with many things in POA law, the actions POAs can take are going to depend on the specifics of the complaints. Let’s take for example a situation where an owner hoards a large number of dogs. Multiple neighbors have complained about the noise andsmell near their home. What options are available for the POA? If there is credible documented evidence, first, the POA should look to its governing documents. Are there restrictions on the number of animals allowed on property? If so, then the POA may choose to enforce that restriction under the guidance of its attorney after any FHA concerns have been evaluated and addressed. It is important to note that a POA may not have a clear enforcement path if the conduct does not violate an applicable provision of the governing documents. If the conduct constitutes a violation of applicable city codes, the POA should consult with an attorney about getting the city involved.
Douglas v. Kreigsfeld Corp. offers a framework on how POAs can approach these situations. This District of Columbia case involved a dispute between a landlord and a tenant in which the landlord presented evidence that the tenant’s apartment “had a foul odor emanating into the rest of the building; that the toilet was frequently filled with feces and urine; and that garbage, rotting food, and dirty laundry were strewn about.” The landlord began eviction proceedings as a result of these issues. Counsel for the tenant later notified the landlord that a local governmental agency offered resources to assist with hoarding issues, which included cleaning. The government agency would only agree to clean the home if it was understood that the tenant would be permitted to stay. The tenant, through counsel, requested a reasonable accommodation to stay the eviction proceedings long enough to allow her to make use of the government service to clean the apartment. The initial request was very vague in terms of the timeline needed to clean the tenant’s space. The landlord denied the request based on its lack of specificity. The trial court found in favor of the landlord and the tenant was evicted. The court of appeals ultimately determined the landlord likely had an obligation to engage in additional conversations with the tenant as necessary to determine the details of the request and evaluate whether the requested accommodation was reasonable.
One way a POA can attempt to address hoarding is by working with homeowners to identify available resources that may help them and grant reasonable accommodations as necessary to allow the situation to be brought under control. If a homeowner makes a request for reasonable accommodation that is not sufficiently clear, the POA should work with the owner to obtain any additional information needed to fully evaluate the request.
Consult Your Attorney
Anything involving the FHA can get complicated very quickly, and the applicable rules are not especially intuitive. Judges and the Department of Justice take violations of the FHA very seriously and the ramifications for a violation can be severe. POAs with situations relating to hoarding should work closely with their legal counsel to navigate the complex web of regulatory guidance as it relates to the FHA and reasonable accommodations.
