Rental Property Occupancy Limits

Ever wonder whether you can limit the number of people you rent a property to?  Or how many people can live in your rental property?

The key to implementing an occupancy policy is to make sure the policy does not discriminate under local, state, or federal law.  A common issue with occupancy policies is when the policy discriminates based on familial status (i.e. the number of children an applicant has).  An example of this would be a policy that allows a family of four to live in a 3-bedroom property, but not a family of six.  Even when a policy is valid as written, the landlord’s implementation (or lack of implementation) of that policy can make it discriminatory.

A safe, but not guaranteed, approach is to comply with HUD and Fair Housing standards when developing and enforcing your occupancy policy.  The HUD Occupancy Handbook provides owners (or landlords on owner’s behalf) have discretion in making these policies.  This is because HUD recognizes each property is different and does not fall within a “one-size fits all” category.

Some factors that should be considered when developing the occupancy policy (and are considered when determining its validity) are as follows:

• Size of the overall property being rented;
• Size of the rooms within the rental property;
  • Some bedrooms may be too small for people to share and may fall outside of HUD guidelines suggesting a 2+1 approach for people per room.
• The number of people in the family;
• The relationship of family members;
• The family’s need for a larger place as a reasonable accommodation; and
• Balancing efficient use of the property (i.e. avoid overcrowding/underutilization of the property).

Please contact Michael C. McClure at Brian Webb Legal for a consultation to avoid unnecessary issues with your policies.