D.D.A. guide: A place to live
Accommodation
A person with a disability has a right to obtain accommodation in the same way as people without a disability. This includes renting a flat, house, unit, a room in a boarding house, hotel or motel.
What is expected?
The Disability Discrimination Act (D.D.A.) makes it against the law for real estate agents, landlords or landladies, and other providers of accommodation to discriminate against a person because of a disability.
This means that providers of accommodation cannot:
- Refuse an application for accommodation from a person with a disability
- Provide a person with a disability with accommodation on less favourable terms and conditions. For example, giving a person with a disability the least attractive room in the hotel or not allowing a person to keep his or her guide dog in a rented flat.
- Put the application of a person with a disability on the bottom of the list. For example, giving an application a lower priority because it is assumed the person with a disability will be a less stable tenant.
Like other areas of the D.D.A. a defence of "unjustifiable hardship" may be available in some circumstances.
Buying Land
A person with a disability has a right to buy land in the same way as people without a disability.
The D.D.A. makes it against the law for a real estate agent, landowner, or other land and property agents to discriminate against a person because of his or her disability, or the disability of an associate.
This means that an agent or landowner cannot:
- Refuse to sell land or property to a person with a disability. For example, refusing to sell a house to a person with a disability because neighbours object to the person's disability or the disabilities of any group intending to use the house; or residents in a block of units refusing to sell a unit to a person because of his or her disability.
- Offer land or property to a person with a disability on less favourable terms and conditions. For example, offering to sell land to a person with a disability at a higher price.
