The Fair Housing Amendments Act added people with disabilities to other classes explicitly protected by the federal government from discrimination.
       Landlords and condo associations can no longer turn away qualified renters or buyers who are disabled. They can not refuse to make a reasonable accommodation, such as allowing a visually impaired person to have a guide dog, even when there is a general "no pets" policy. Nor can they refuse to let people with disabilities make needed architectural additions or renovations to the property. The landlord is not required to pay for these changes, and can require the tenant to return the property to its original state when leaving. (For instance, the landlord could require that a ramp be removed, but it is unlikely that a judge would rule that retrofitting a door to its original narrow width would be a reasonable demand, unless there were special circumstances.)   
        When building new multi-family dwellings of four or more units, builders must include seven access features in all ground floor units (unless the terrain prohibits access). In multi-family dwellings with elevators, every unit must include these access features. 

Unfortunately, although the architectural access portion of the Fair Housing Amendment took effect in 1991, many builders have flagrantly ignored the law.  The good news is that a growing number of law suits have been successful. Among the groups who have sued successfully in cases where construction is non-compliant are Access Living of Chicago, DRAC in Salt Lake City, and the US Department of Justice.

For a summary of disabled residents' rights under the Fair Housing Amendments Act, and a description of the seven architectural access requirements, go to http://www.fairhousingfirst.org/fairhousing/requirements.html.