Is “no service animals” a Fair Housing violation in a listing?

Why

Assistance animals are a disability accommodation, not pets. Excluding them in an ad is an explicit disability limitation.

Safer wording

• assistance animals accommodated as required by law

What the tag means

Avoid means an explicit preference or limitation, or a phrase on the avoid side of the cited word lists. This is the risk end of the scale, not a style choice.

Check your own wording

Paste a sentence or your whole listing. It runs ListingLint's real rule engine in your browser, and nothing is uploaded. no service animals

1 phrase to look at

• Avoid “no service animals”

  Assistance animals are a disability accommodation, not pets. Excluding them in an ad is an explicit disability limitation.

  Try: assistance animals accommodated as required by law

A word check, not a legal review. Open the full checker for fixes, the fact lock and the MLS character count.

What the law covers here

The federal statute uses the word "handicap" and defines it as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a record of one, or being regarded as having one. Describing accessibility features of the property is generally fine. Describing which people can or can't live there is what gets flagged.

• Fair Housing Act definitions, 42 U.S.C. § 3602
• Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3604(c)

Sources

• HUD advertising regulation, 24 CFR § 100.75
• Fair Housing Advertising Word and Phrase List (New York Press Assn.; source: Oklahoma Press Assn.)

Related phrases

• no wheelchairs Avoid
• not suitable for wheelchairs Avoid
• able-bodied only Avoid
• agile Caution
• crippled Avoid
• no hiv Avoid
• no group homes Avoid
• non-drinkers only Avoid

All disability phrases on one page · The 12-check listing checklist

Not legal advice. Word lists can't judge context, and laws differ by state and city, with some protecting more classes than federal law does. If you're unsure about a listing, ask your broker or a fair housing attorney. Rule dis-service-animals, ListingLint rules v2026.10.2.