1,406,332 residents
The only borough on the US mainland, in Bronx County.
Get Your ESA Letter in The Bronx Online
The Bronx has the city's largest concentration of public and subsidised housing, and that is exactly where the 2026 federal change did not reach.
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Your signed letter is emailed within 15 minutes of clinical approval.
From $129
Same pricing statewide, and no charge unless you are approved.
Population figures on this page come from the U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025, reference date July 1, 2025.
Renting in the Bronx with an assistance animal
The Bronx has about 1.41 million residents, down roughly 66,000 against the 2020 Census, the sharpest proportional decline of the five boroughs at 4.5 percent. It is the only borough attached to the mainland, and it holds the city's densest concentration of public housing, Section 8 voucher holders and rent-stabilised apartments.
Why the 2026 HUD change mattered less here
When HUD narrowed its enforcement in May 2026, the coverage suggested tenants everywhere had lost protection. Bronx residents in subsidised housing had the strongest reason of anyone to ignore that framing.
HUD's memorandum addresses Fair Housing Act enforcement. It expressly does not address obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Those duties attach to public housing authorities and federally subsidised housing independently, so if you live in NYCHA housing or hold a Section 8 voucher, they were not touched by it.
HUD FHEO memorandum, May 22, 2026On top of that, the NYC Human Rights Law and the New York State Human Rights Law apply in full, and neither moved. Between the three, a Bronx tenant in subsidised housing sits behind more layers of protection than almost any renter in the country.
NYCHA and subsidised housing
Requests in NYCHA developments go through the authority's own reasonable accommodation process rather than to a private landlord. Submit in writing, keep your copy, and follow up if you do not hear back, because these systems are large and things sit in queues. A letter from a New York-licensed clinician documenting a disability-related need is what the process asks for.
Co-op City and the large developments
Co-op City in the northeast Bronx is the largest co-operative housing development in the world, with more than 15,000 units. Like any co-op it has a board and a process, and like any housing provider it owes the same accommodation duties. Scale means patience: submit in writing and ask about the meeting schedule.
Rent-stabilised buildings
Much of the Grand Concourse, Fordham and Pelham Parkway is rent-stabilised housing with professional or semi-professional management. Stabilisation governs your rent, not your right to an accommodation, and the two should not be conflated by anyone.
Across the borough
We write for tenants in Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Fordham, Belmont, Mott Haven, Melrose, the Grand Concourse, Pelham Parkway, Throggs Neck, Castle Hill, Soundview, Co-op City and Woodlawn.
What changed in 2026, and what it means here
In May 2026, HUD rescinded its 2020 assistance animal notice and narrowed federal enforcement to animals individually trained to perform disability-related work. New York felt that less than most states, because the New York State Human Rights Law is separate, still in force, and has a broader disability definition than federal law. In the five boroughs the NYC Human Rights Law adds a further layer. We explain the change in full on our New York ESA laws page, and it is worth reading before you submit anything.
ESA and PSD letter pricing in The Bronx
Pricing is identical in every New York city. You are charged only after a licensed New York clinician approves your letter.
ESA Letter
$129
Housing documentation, up to 2 animals
- Signed by a clinician licensed in New York
- Covers up to 2 emotional support animals
- Drafted for managing agents and co-op boards
- Digital PDF, emailed 15 minutes after approval
- Unlimited free re-issues if a board wants changes
ESA Letter, 3+ Pets
$199
Housing documentation, 3 or more animals
- Signed by a clinician licensed in New York
- Covers 3 or more emotional support animals
- Every animal named separately, as boards require
- Digital PDF, emailed 15 minutes after approval
- Unlimited free re-issues if a board wants changes
PSD Letter
$149
Task-trained dog documentation, up to 2 dogs
- Records a psychiatric disability and the dog's trained tasks
- Covers up to 2 dogs
- Meets HUD's post-2026 training standard
- Digital PDF, emailed 15 minutes after approval
- A frank conversation about which tasks count
PSD Letter, up to 3 Dogs
$229
Task-trained dog documentation, up to 3 dogs
- Records a psychiatric disability and each dog's trained tasks
- Covers up to 3 dogs
- Meets HUD's post-2026 training standard
- Digital PDF, emailed 15 minutes after approval
- A frank conversation about which tasks count
A single fee, billed once. Your card is held at booking and charged only when a New York-licensed clinician signs. A decline releases the hold.
The Bronx ESA letter questions
I live in NYCHA housing. Did the 2026 HUD change affect me?
HUD's memorandum expressly does not address ADA or Section 504 obligations, which attach to public housing authorities independently. The NYC and State Human Rights Laws also still apply in full. Your position was not weakened by it.
How do I request an accommodation in a NYCHA development?
Through NYCHA's own reasonable accommodation process rather than a private landlord, with documentation from a licensed provider. Submit in writing, keep a copy, and follow up if you do not get a response.
Does rent stabilisation affect my ESA request?
No. Rent stabilisation governs what you pay and how your lease renews. Your right to a reasonable accommodation comes from human rights law and runs separately.
Can a Section 8 landlord refuse my emotional support animal?
They are subject to the same accommodation duties as any housing provider, and federally subsidised housing carries additional Section 504 obligations. A refusal has to rest on undue hardship or the individual animal's actual behaviour.
Official sources for this page
Nothing legal on this page is asserted without a source behind it. Open them and read the originals rather than taking our summary on trust.
- NYC Commission on Human Rights — Emotional Support Animals in Housing (PDF)Official city fact sheet on what a housing provider must do for an emotional support animal.
- New York City Housing AuthorityPublic housing in the five boroughs, where ADA and Section 504 duties apply independently of HUD's 2026 memorandum.
- NYC Commission on Human RightsThe city agency enforcing the NYC Human Rights Law, which is broader than state and federal law.
- New York State Division of Human RightsWhere to file a housing discrimination complaint under the New York State Human Rights Law.
- New York Civil Rights Law § 47-bPublic access rights for guide, hearing and service dogs. Emotional support animals are not covered by this article.
- NYC Housing Preservation and DevelopmentThe city housing agency, and the housing maintenance code containing the three-month pet law.
- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentFair Housing Act enforcement and the May 2026 assistance animal memorandum.
Elsewhere in New York we serve
Book your The Bronx consultation
Same-day appointments are usually available, seven days a week. If the clinician does not approve you, there is no charge.