When a Washington Association Says No Pets
Covenants are written by developers and amended by boards, and plenty of them ban animals outright or cap them by weight. None of that removes an association's duty to consider a reasonable accommodation. The difficulty is procedural: knowing which statute governs, which desk decides, and how long a board takes.
At a glance
| Governing act | Chapter 64.90 RCW |
|---|---|
| Older communities | 64.32, 64.34, 64.38 |
| Wider reach from | January 1, 2028 |
| Pet fee for an approved animal | Not chargeable |
| Complaints | Human Rights Commission |
Four Acts, One State
Washington rebuilt this area of law in 2018 and let the old statutes keep running for existing communities. Which one applies to you depends mostly on when the community was created.
Your recorded declaration names the act it was created under. A title company or the association's manager can confirm it if the paperwork is unclear.
Why the Covenant Is Not the Last Word
An association that controls whether somebody may live somewhere is acting as a housing provider, and the anti-discrimination rules reach it just as they reach a landlord.
- The state law against discriminationIt applies to any person with the right to sell, rent or otherwise control real property, which is exactly what a board exercises over a unit owner.
- Federal fair housing lawIt runs in parallel and covers associations too, which is why most reported cases in this area involve both.
- The covenant survivesA successful request does not strike the no-pets clause from the declaration. It creates an exception for you, on the facts you gave.
- Boards are volunteersMost refusals here are ignorance rather than malice, and a clear, calm letter resolves more of them than a threat does.
Draft the Letter to Your Board
Fill in the four details and the paragraph writes itself. Copy it into an email to the manager, and attach the documentation separately rather than pasting a diagnosis into the body.
A starting point, not legal advice. Adjust the wording to match your situation before you send it.
What a Board May Still Enforce
An accommodation adjusts the pet rules. It does not put the animal above the community's ordinary standards.
A board may also act on a specific animal that has behaved dangerously. That has to rest on what the animal has actually done, not on its breed or its size.
Fines While a Request Is Pending
The common pattern is a violation notice that keeps running while the board takes its time. Here is how to keep the record straight.
- Object in writing and date the objection to the day the request went in, not to the day the fine appeared.
- Ask for the decision in writing, with the reason if it is a refusal. Silence is worth chasing at the next meeting.
- Keep every notice. A pattern of fines against one owner while others go untouched is the shape of a selective enforcement argument.
- Associations generally owe owners access to records. A request for the minutes and enforcement history is ordinary, not hostile.
- If it stalls, the Human Rights Commission takes complaints against housing providers, and associations fall inside that.
Renting Inside a Condominium
Tenants in an owner-occupied building face two rulebooks at once, and the requests go in different directions.
To your landlord
They are the housing provider under your tenancy, and they hold the pet terms in the lease. The accommodation request goes to them first, in writing.
Ask them to forward it to the association rather than sending it twice yourself, so there is one thread and one date.
To the association
The board controls the covenant, and an owner cannot simply override it for their tenant. It has its own duty to consider the request.
If the manager tells you tenants may not make requests, that is worth challenging in writing rather than accepting at the desk.
Boards Move on Meeting Cycles
The single most useful piece of local knowledge about associations is their calendar.
- Find the meeting date firstA request landing the day after a meeting may wait a month for a decision. One landing a week before it usually does not.
- Managers are not boardsA management company often answers first. Useful, but a refusal from a manager is not necessarily the board's position.
- Ask to be on the agendaNot to argue, but so the item is minuted and there is a recorded date for the decision.
- Give them something easy to approveA short letter, clear documentation, no diagnosis, and an explicit offer to follow the community's ordinary animal rules.
Documentation for a Board Request
The same letter works for an association as for a landlord. Live prices below, pulled from the pricing page.
Association Questions, Answered
Can a Washington HOA enforce a no-pets covenant against an assistance animal?
Not as a blanket answer. An association that governs housing is subject to the state law against discrimination and to federal fair housing law, and both require it to consider a reasonable accommodation. The covenant stays on the books; it bends for the individual request.
Which statute covers my community?
Communities created from mid-2018 onward fall under the Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act at chapter 64.90 RCW. Older ones sit under the previous homeowners' association and condominium acts, with parts of the newer act reaching all communities from January 1, 2028.
Can the board charge a pet fee or a deposit?
Not for an approved assistance animal. The animal is not a pet for this purpose, so pet rent, pet deposits and per-animal fees do not apply. You remain responsible for any actual damage the animal causes.
Do weight and breed limits still apply?
Generally not to an approved assistance animal. A limit written for pets is exactly the kind of rule an accommodation adjusts. An association may still act on a specific animal that has behaved dangerously, based on that animal's conduct rather than its breed.
I rent a condo. Who do I ask?
Both, in practice. Your landlord is the housing provider under the tenancy, and the association controls the covenant. Sending the request to the landlord and asking them to route it to the board keeps the paper trail tidy.
The board fined me while the request was pending. What now?
Put the objection in writing, referring to the date the request was made. A fine imposed over an animal that is the subject of a pending accommodation request is worth raising with the Human Rights Commission, which takes complaints against housing providers including associations.
Taking It Further With Your Board
General information for Washington residents, current as of September 2026. Declarations, bylaws and rules differ from community to community, and this page cannot tell you what yours says. Not legal advice or medical advice, and we are not affiliated with any association, management company or state agency. In a crisis, call or text 988.
Before the Next Board Meeting
Start with the free screening, so the documentation is ready when the item reaches the agenda.
