{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/51.5-45.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/51.5-45.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/51.5-45.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/51.5-45.html"}],"law_id":77113,"edition_id":1,"section_id":77113,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-45","catch_line":"Right of persons with disabilities to housing accommodations","history":"Code 1950, \u00a7 63.1-171.7; 1972, c. 156; 1979, c. 207; 1984, c. 753; 1985, c. 421, \u00a7 51.01-45; 1987, c. 500; 2014, c. 616; 2019, c. 288.","full_text":"A\n\nAll persons with disabilities unrelated to their ability to acquire, rent, or maintain property shall be entitled to full and equal opportunity to acquire, as other members of the general public, any housing accommodations offered for sale, rent, lease, or compensation, subject to the conditions and limitations established by law and applying alike to all persons. “Housing accommodations” for the purpose of this section means any real property, or portion thereof, which is used or occupied or is intended, arranged, or designed to be used or occupied, as the home, residence, or sleeping place of one or more human beings but does not include any single family residence the occupant or owner of which rents, leases, or furnishes for compensation not more than one room therein.B\n\nEvery visually impaired person who has a guide dog, every person who is deaf or hard of hearing and has a hearing dog, and every mobility-impaired or otherwise disabled person with a service dog shall be entitled to full and equal access with such dog to all housing accommodations provided for in this section. He shall not be required to pay extra compensation for such dog but shall be liable for any damage done to the premises by such dog.C\n\nNothing in this section shall require any person offering for sale, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to modify that real property or provide a higher degree of care for a person with a disability than for a person who is not disabled, except as provided in § 36-99.5, nor shall anything in this section require any person who is selling, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to sell, rent, lease, or provide such property to any person who would constitute a direct threat to the property or safety of others.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":276653,"text":"All persons with disabilities unrelated to their ability to acquire, rent, or maintain property shall be entitled to full and equal opportunity to acquire, as other members of the general public, any housing accommodations offered for sale, rent, lease, or compensation, subject to the conditions and limitations established by law and applying alike to all persons. “Housing accommodations” for the purpose of this section means any real property, or portion thereof, which is used or occupied or is intended, arranged, or designed to be used or occupied, as the home, residence, or sleeping place of one or more human beings but does not include any single family residence the occupant or owner of which rents, leases, or furnishes for compensation not more than one room therein.","type":"section","prefixes":["A"],"prefix":"A","entire_prefix":"A","prefix_anchor":"A","level":1,"next_prefix":"B"},"1":{"id":276654,"text":"Every visually impaired person who has a guide dog, every person who is deaf or hard of hearing and has a hearing dog, and every mobility-impaired or otherwise disabled person with a service dog shall be entitled to full and equal access with such dog to all housing accommodations provided for in this section. He shall not be required to pay extra compensation for such dog but shall be liable for any damage done to the premises by such dog.","type":"section","prefixes":["B"],"prefix":"B","entire_prefix":"B","prefix_anchor":"B","level":1,"prior_prefix":"A","next_prefix":"C"},"2":{"id":276655,"text":"Nothing in this section shall require any person offering for sale, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to modify that real property or provide a higher degree of care for a person with a disability than for a person who is not disabled, except as provided in § 36-99.5, nor shall anything in this section require any person who is selling, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to sell, rent, lease, or provide such property to any person who would constitute a direct threat to the property or safety of others.","type":"section","prefixes":["C"],"prefix":"C","entire_prefix":"C","prefix_anchor":"C","level":1,"prior_prefix":"B"}},"ancestry":[{"id":14354,"edition_id":1,"name":"Rights of Persons With Disabilities","identifier":"9","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12761,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:47:51","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:47:51","permalink":{"id":237089,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":14354,"identifier":"9","token":"51.5\/9","url":"\/51.5\/9\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12761,"edition_id":1,"name":"Persons With Disabilities","identifier":"51.5","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","permalink":{"id":236393,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12761,"identifier":"51.5","token":"51.5","url":"\/51.5\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":55888,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-40","catch_line":"Nondiscrimination under state grants and programs","url":"\/51.5-40\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-40","metadata":false},{"id":60539,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-40.1","catch_line":"Definitions","url":"\/51.5-40.1\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-40.1","metadata":false},{"id":73313,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-41","catch_line":"Discrimination against otherwise qualified persons with disabilities by employers prohibited","url":"\/51.5-41\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-41","metadata":false},{"id":55669,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-42","catch_line":"Discrimination against otherwise qualified persons with disabilities by educational institutions prohibited","url":"\/51.5-42\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-42","metadata":false},{"id":79150,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-43","catch_line":"Discrimination against qualified persons with disabilities in exercising right to vote prohibited","url":"\/51.5-43\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-43","metadata":false},{"id":58207,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-44","catch_line":"Rights of persons with disabilities in public places and places of public accommodation","url":"\/51.5-44\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-44","metadata":false},{"id":77660,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-44.1","catch_line":"Fraudulent representation of a service dog or hearing dog; penalty","url":"\/51.5-44.1\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-44.1","metadata":false},{"id":77113,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-45","catch_line":"Right of persons with disabilities to housing accommodations","url":"\/51.5-45\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-45","metadata":false},{"id":78152,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-46","catch_line":"Remedies","url":"\/51.5-46\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-46","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":77660,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-44.1","catch_line":"Fraudulent representation of a service dog or hearing dog; penalty","url":"\/51.5-44.1\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-44.1","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":78152,"structure_id":14354,"section_number":"51.5-46","catch_line":"Remedies","url":"\/51.5-46\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-46","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/51.5-45\/","history_text":"

The record of this law\u2019s original creation isn\u2019t available online. It has been modified 7 times. Those modifications are cataloged by \u201cThe Acts of Assembly,\u201d a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly\u2019s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1972, chapter 156; in 1979, chapter 207; in 1984, chapter 753; in 1985, chapter 421; in 1987, chapter 500; in 2014, chapter 616<\/a>; in 2019, chapter 288<\/a>.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":[{"id":65460,"section_number":"36-99.5","catch_line":"Smoke alarms for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing","order_by":null,"url":"\/36-99.5\/"}],"permalink":{"id":237119,"object_type":"law","relational_id":77113,"identifier":"51.5-45","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-45","url":"\/51.5-45\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/51.5-45\/","token":"51.5\/9\/51.5-45","dublin_core":{"Title":"Right of persons with disabilities to housing accommodations","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 51.5-45","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

A.<\/span> All persons with disabilities unrelated to their ability to acquire, rent, or maintain property shall be entitled to full and equal opportunity to acquire, as other members of the general public, any housing accommodations<\/span> offered for sale, rent, lease, or compensation, subject to the conditions and limitations established by law<\/span> and applying alike to all persons. “Housing accommodations<\/span>” for the purpose of this section means any real property, or portion thereof, which is used or occupied or is intended, arranged, or designed to be used or occupied, as the home, residence, or sleeping place of one or more human beings but does not include any single family residence the occupant or owner of which rents, leases, or furnishes for compensation not more than one room therein. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

B.<\/span> Every visually impaired person who has a guide dog, every person who is deaf or hard of hearing and has a hearing dog<\/span>, and every mobility-impaired or otherwise disabled person<\/span> with a service dog<\/span> shall be entitled to full and equal access with such dog to all housing accommodations<\/span> provided for in this section. He shall not be required to pay extra compensation for such dog but shall be liable for any damage done to the premises by such dog. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

C.<\/span> Nothing in this section shall require any person offering for sale, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to modify that real property or provide a higher degree of care for a person with a disability<\/span> than for a person who is not disabled, except as provided in § 36-99.5<\/a>, nor shall anything in this section require any person who is selling, renting, leasing, or providing for compensation real property to sell, rent, lease, or provide such property to any person who would constitute a direct threat to the property or safety of others. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nRIGHT OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES TO HOUSING ACCOMMODATIONS (\u00a7 51.5-45)\n\nA. All persons with disabilities unrelated to their ability to acquire, rent, or\nmaintain property shall be entitled to full and equal opportunity to acquire, as\nother members of the general public, any housing accommodations offered for\nsale, rent, lease, or compensation, subject to the conditions and limitations\nestablished by law and applying alike to all persons. “Housing\naccommodations” for the purpose of this section means any real property,\nor portion thereof, which is used or occupied or is intended, arranged, or\ndesigned to be used or occupied, as the home, residence, or sleeping place of\none or more human beings but does not include any single family residence the\noccupant or owner of which rents, leases, or furnishes for compensation not more\nthan one room therein.\n\nB. Every visually impaired person who has a guide dog, every person who is deaf\nor hard of hearing and has a hearing dog, and every mobility-impaired or\notherwise disabled person with a service dog shall be entitled to full and equal\naccess with such dog to all housing accommodations provided for in this section.\nHe shall not be required to pay extra compensation for such dog but shall be\nliable for any damage done to the premises by such dog.\n\nC. Nothing in this section shall require any person offering for sale, renting,\nleasing, or providing for compensation real property to modify that real\nproperty or provide a higher degree of care for a person with a disability than\nfor a person who is not disabled, except as provided in § 36-99.5, nor\nshall anything in this section require any person who is selling, renting,\nleasing, or providing for compensation real property to sell, rent, lease, or\nprovide such property to any person who would constitute a direct threat to the\nproperty or safety of others.\n\nHISTORY: Code 1950, \u00a7 63.1-171.7; 1972, c. 156; 1979, c. 207; 1984, c. 753;\n1985, c. 421, \u00a7 51.01-45; 1987, c. 500; 2014, c. 616; 2019, c. 288.","edition":{"id":1,"name":"2025","slug":"2025","date_created":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","date_modified":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","current":1,"order_by":1,"last_import":null}}