501,290 residents
The only borough growing since 2020, in Richmond County.
Get Your ESA Letter in Staten Island Online
Staten Island is the only borough that gained population since 2020, and the only one where most housing is a house rather than an apartment.
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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 on Staten Island with an assistance animal
Staten Island has about 501,000 residents and is the only borough above its 2020 Census count, up roughly 5,500 people or 1.1 percent while every other borough fell. At around 8,000 residents per square mile it is also by far the least dense, and its housing reflects that: single-family and two-family homes, townhouse developments and low-rise condominiums rather than apartment towers.
You get city law with suburban housing
This is the useful quirk of renting here. Staten Island is inside New York City, so the NYC Human Rights Law applies in full, with the Commission on Human Rights as your enforcement route. But the housing you are asking about is mostly a house owned by an individual, the kind of arrangement that in Westchester or Long Island would fall under weaker state-only protection.
Practically, that means the strongest assistance animal protections in the country apply to a landlord who may have no idea they exist. Lead with the letter and a short written request, not with the law. If it is refused, the Commission takes complaints and filing is free.
Condominium and townhouse associations
The newer developments in the mid-island and south shore often have condominium or homeowner associations with their own rules on animals: numbers, sizes, where they may be walked. Those rules do not override a valid accommodation request. Send your letter to your landlord and ask them to file it with the association, because requests here stall on paperwork far more often than on objection.
Yards, cars and practical life
Staten Island is the one borough where a rented home routinely comes with outdoor space, which makes life with a dog markedly easier than in a Manhattan studio. It is also the most car-dependent borough, so factor in veterinary access, and remember that a dog travelling on the Staten Island Ferry or the MTA is subject to transit rules rather than disability access rights unless it is a trained service dog.
Across the borough
We write for tenants in St. George, Stapleton, Tompkinsville, West Brighton, Port Richmond, New Dorp, Todt Hill, Great Kills, Eltingville, Annadale and Tottenville.
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 Staten Island
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.
Staten Island ESA letter questions
Does the NYC Human Rights Law apply on Staten Island?
Yes, in full. Staten Island is one of the five boroughs, so the NYC Human Rights Law applies and the NYC Commission on Human Rights is your enforcement route, exactly as in Manhattan or Brooklyn.
My landlord owns the house and lives next door. Do the rules apply?
In most circumstances yes. Narrow exemptions exist for certain very small owner-occupied properties, so if one is claimed, raise it with the Commission on Human Rights rather than accepting it.
My condo association has a pet size limit. Does that bind my ESA?
No. City guidance states that weight and size policies must not be applied to emotional support animals unless the exemption would be an undue hardship. Ask your landlord to file your letter with the association.
Can my emotional support animal ride the Staten Island Ferry?
Only under the operator's own pet rules, typically requiring a carrier. Public access rights under Civil Rights Law Article 4-B extend to trained guide, hearing and service dogs, not to emotional support animals.
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.
- NYC Commission on Human RightsThe city agency enforcing the NYC Human Rights Law, which is broader than state and federal law.
- NYC Housing Preservation and DevelopmentThe city housing agency, and the housing maintenance code containing the three-month pet 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 Department of Health and Mental HygieneThe Health Code that restricts which animals may be kept in the five boroughs, regardless of accommodation status.
- 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 Staten Island consultation
Same-day appointments are usually available, seven days a week. If the clinician does not approve you, there is no charge.