Housing Equity & Advocacy Resource Team

Housing Equity & Advocacy Resource Team (HEART) is a nonprofit law firm that provides free legal representation and advocacy to keep people and their companion animals housed. The overarching goal of HEART is to bridge the gap between pets and housing issues and provide education, outreach, and advocacy to tenants with pets being threatened with displacement. The long-term goal is to eliminate the arbitrary restrictions on pet ownership in rental housing and ensure all companion animals are welcome (regardless of their breed or size). All of HEART's services are provided free of cost. Since its inception in May 2018, HEART has helped nearly 600 people and 300 companion animals stay together in their homes and has helped keep pets out of the animal shelters.

Housing is a human right. No one should be evicted because of humanity's natural tendency to take care of other animals/living beings. Nobody should ever have to decide between keeping the roof over their heads or their pet.

HEART ensures tenants and their animals remain housed while helping tenants understand their rights and access to the resources they need to care for their companion animal.

With your support, we can continue to fight for people and pets to stay together and provide tenants with sufficient resources to thrive/survive while advocating for themselves and their community.

HEART fights to help tenants and their pets stay together through:

                                                          TENANTS RIGHTS 

• Is it possible to keep a pet if a building has a "No Pet" Policy? 

• What do I do if my landlord won't let me keep my pet anymore? 

• What do I do if my landlord doesn't accept my support animal? 

                                                          SUPPORT ANIMALS

• Do l qualify for a support animal? 

• What documents am Irequired to have to confirm my pet's status as support animal? 

• What is the process to have my support animal accepted by my landlord? 

                                                         RESOURCES  

• Free legal eviction prevention support 

· Template letters to landlords and health care providers for support animals 

• Connections to local partners providing pet resources (ie spay/neuter, Food, supplies) 

Your tax-deducible donation to HEART helps continue to bridge the gap between animal companions and housing, to prevent the surrender to animal shelters by providing education and advocacy to tenants with pets threatened with eviction and to eliminate arbitrary restrictions on pet ownership to ensure all pets are welcome.