A property claiming the 55-or-older exemption must have at least 80 percent of its occupied units housing at least one person aged 55 or older

xp.fair_housing.hopa_eighty_percent_occupancy_for_55_or_older_housing · v1.0.0

The familial status provisions do not apply to housing intended and operated for persons 55 years of age or older, but only where the housing complies with section 807(b)(2)(C) of the Fair Housing Act and with all three of 24 CFR 100.305, 100.306 and 100.307. The occupancy test is that at least 80 percent of occupied units must be occupied by at least one person aged 55 or older. An occupied unit includes a temporarily vacant unit where the primary occupant lived there during the past year and intends to return periodically. Four categories do not break the test: unoccupied units are excluded from the denominator; units occupied by under-55 employees who perform substantial management or maintenance duties; units occupied by persons under 55 who are necessary to provide a reasonable accommodation to a disabled resident; and, for newly constructed housing first occupied after 12 March 1989, the requirement does not apply until at least 25 percent of units are occupied. Where the 80 percent calculation produces a fraction of a unit, that unit counts toward the units that must have a 55-or-older occupant. The facility may set whatever age restriction it chooses, or none, for the remaining units, and may allow occupancy by families with children so long as it still meets 100.305 and 100.306(a).

Confidence

high

Effective from

1999-05-03

Last reviewed

2026-09-07