What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Official syllabus topic | Practice of Real Estate: Fair Housing Disability Protections |
|---|---|
| Official PSI area | Practice of Real Estate |
| Published weight | 12% of the 100-question national portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 2026 |
The Rule
PSI publishes a weight for the complete official area, not a guaranteed count for this individual comparison. Use the source, document, actor, event, and timing stated in the question before applying a memorized definition.
Side-by-side comparison
Read across each row. The terms are deliberately compared on identical dimensions so the difference remains clear when the exam hides the vocabulary inside a scenario.
| Decision dimension | Reasonable accommodation | Reasonable modification |
|---|---|---|
| Change | Rule, policy, practice, or service | Physical change to a dwelling or common-use area |
| Example | Exception to a no-pets rule for an assistance animal | Ramp, grab bar, or altered doorway |
| Usual private-housing cost | Housing provider generally bears the administrative or service cost | Requester generally pays, subject to other laws and housing-program rules |
| Nexus | Change must be needed because of disability to afford equal use or enjoyment | Physical change must be needed because of disability to afford equal use or enjoyment |
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. A tenant with a mobility disability asks for an assigned accessible parking space near the entrance even though the property uses unassigned parking.
Reason it through. The request changes a parking policy rather than physically altering the premises, and it is tied to equal use because of disability.
Answer. Analyze it as a reasonable accommodation request.
Common exam traps
- Using accommodation and modification interchangeably
- Assuming equal treatment means never changing a rule
- Applying one cost rule to every assisted-housing program
- Demanding unnecessary medical details when disability and need are apparent
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
These are original instructional questions mapped to the July 1, 2026 PSI outline. They are not copied from PSI or any live examination. Choose an answer before opening the explanation.
Question 1A tenant who uses a wheelchair asks the landlord of a private apartment complex, which uses unassigned parking, to reserve a space near the building entrance. How should the landlord classify this request?
- A. A reasonable modification, because parking spaces are physical property
- B. A preference the landlord may refuse because the rule applies to everyone
- C. A reasonable accommodation, because it asks for a change in parking policy
- D. A service request that fair housing law does not reach
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. A reasonable accommodation, because it asks for a change in parking policy
An accommodation changes a rule, policy, practice or service, while a modification physically changes the premises. Reserving a space changes how parking is assigned without building anything, so it is an accommodation. Candidates who pick modification are reacting to the word parking instead of asking what actually changes.
Question 2A tenant with a mobility disability in a privately owned rental that receives no federal assistance asks to install grab bars in the unit's bathroom. Under the usual Fair Housing Act framework, who generally pays for the installation?
- A. The tenant, because the request is a modification of the premises
- B. The landlord, because every disability request is at the provider's cost
- C. The landlord and tenant equally, unless the lease says otherwise
- D. No one, because the landlord may refuse any physical change
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. The tenant, because the request is a modification of the premises
Grab bars physically change the dwelling, so this is a reasonable modification, and in private housing the requester generally pays for it. The provider-pays rule belongs to accommodations, such as an exception to a policy. Applying one cost rule to every request is the trap, and assisted housing can follow different rules, which is why the stem rules it out.
Question 3A landlord with a strict no-pets policy receives a request from an applicant with a disability to keep an assistance animal. Which response fits fair housing rules?
- A. Deny it, since the no-pets rule applies to every applicant equally
- B. Treat it as a modification the applicant must pay to carry out
- C. Approve it only after reviewing the applicant's full medical records
- D. Evaluate it as a reasonable accommodation to the pet policy
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: D. Evaluate it as a reasonable accommodation to the pet policy
An exception to a no-pets rule changes a policy, so it is analyzed as a reasonable accommodation, tested for disability-related need and reasonableness. Applying a rule equally is not a defense, because the Act can require a rule to bend so a person with a disability has equal use and enjoyment. The modification answer confuses a policy change with a physical one.
Ready to move on?
You have this distinction down when all of these are true.
- Define every compared term without using the other term as the definition.
- Rebuild the comparison table from memory.
- State the decision rule and Georgia distinction without notes.
- Solve the worked example after changing one key fact.
- Explain the rule or fact that makes each distractor wrong.
- Answer all three original questions correctly in mixed practice on a later day.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Price Fixing Versus Market Allocation Versus Group Boycott. Just as this page sorts a disability request by whether it changes a rule or the building, the next page sorts competitor conduct by whether brokers agreed on price, divided a market, or jointly refused to deal.
Return to the complete exam-concept library or the Practice of Real Estate hub.