What counts as a disability for housing purposes
Answers
A definition worth reading properly, because almost every argument in this area turns on it.
The definition
A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; a record of such an impairment; or being regarded as having one. The first limb is the one that matters here, and it has two halves that both have to hold.
Major life activities
Caring for yourself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating and working. Sleeping, concentrating and working are the ones that usually carry a mental health case, and they are frequently under-described in documentation that focuses on symptoms instead.
Substantially limits
Not a demanding standard, and not a nominal one either. The comparison is with most people in the general population. An impairment that is episodic or in remission still counts if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active, which matters a great deal for conditions that come and go.
Why a diagnosis is neither necessary nor sufficient
Not sufficient, because two people with the same diagnosis can be limited very differently and only one may meet the standard. Not strictly necessary, because the test is about function rather than about a label. In practice a clinician forms a view about both, and a housing provider never sees the diagnosis either way.
Common questions
- Does a diagnosis guarantee I qualify?
- No. The question is what the impairment does to your functioning, not what it is called.