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Fair Housing Design Rule: Does the March 13, 1991 Cutoff Apply to You?
The quoted 24 CFR 100.205 language for covered multifamily dwellings first occupied after March 13, 1991, including its terrain-or-unusual-site-characteristics exception.
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Updated: Sources: 1
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What matters now
- The provision refers to first occupancy after March 13, 1991.
- The provision also includes an occupied-by-that-date or permit-issued-by-June-15-1990 clause.
- The provision assigns the burden of establishing terrain or unusual-site-characteristics impracticality to the person who designed or constructed the housing facility.
- This article covers only the date test and entrance rule in 24 CFR 100.205, not the covered-dwelling definition.
24 CFR 100.205 states that covered multifamily dwellings for first occupancy after March 13, 1991 must have “at least one building entrance on an accessible route unless it is impractical to do so because of the terrain or unusual characteristics of the site.” This article reports the cited provision without determining whether it applies to a particular building.
This original record-reading guide is a general reading aid, not cited evidence. It does not depict a source record; the article text and source links provide the facts.
Key points
- The trigger date is first occupancy after March 13, 1991 — not the date you moved in or the date of any later renovation.
- A building counts as pre-1991 if it was occupied by that date, or its last building permit was issued on or before June 15, 1990.
- The only stated exception is site impracticality, and the burden of proving it falls on the designer or builder.
- This article covers only the date test and the entrance requirement in 24 CFR 100.205; it does not determine whether a given building is a “covered multifamily dwelling” in the first place.
Full text and citation for each point are in the sections below.
The date that triggers the rule
The regulation states the requirement directly: “Covered multifamily dwellings for first occupancy after March 13, 1991 shall be designed and constructed to have at least one building entrance on an accessible route unless it is impractical to do so because of the terrain or unusual characteristics of the site” (24 CFR 100.205). The operative fact is when the dwelling was first occupied, measured against that single date.
Defining “before” the cutoff
The regulation includes this alternate wording: “the dwelling is occupied by that date, or if the last building permit or renewal thereof for the dwelling is issued by a State, County or local government on or before June 15, 1990” (24 CFR 100.205). This article reports the quoted text without applying it to a particular building.
Who bears the burden of proof
The regulation states: “The burden of establishing impracticality because of terrain or unusual site characteristics is on the person or persons who designed or constructed the housing facility” (24 CFR 100.205). This article reports that assignment without applying it to a particular dispute.
What this article does not answer
This article addresses only the date test and entrance requirement in 24 CFR 100.205. It does not determine what counts as a “covered multifamily dwelling” in the first place — that term is defined elsewhere in 24 CFR part 100. It does not address what retrofit obligations, if any, apply to buildings built before the March 13, 1991 trigger. It does not cover Section 504 requirements for federally assisted housing under 24 CFR part 8, and it does not address ADA obligations that may apply to a property’s leasing office. Readers with questions in those areas should consult those separate rules directly.
Source links
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-24/subtitle-B/chapter-I/part-100/subpart-D/section-100.205