Cortland Lists a $350 Pet Fee at Cary and Welcomes Service Animals

Cortland's Cary community lists two pets, an 80 pound limit, a $350 fee and a $25 monthly charge per pet, and says service animals are welcome with no weight limit. The page does not mention emotional support animals. ESA Card has no connection to Cortland: its registration is the ID card and certificate you carry beside your provider's letter.

We read the FAQ of one Cortland community, FAQ at Cortland Cary, which includes a Pet Policy pop-up and carries no date beyond a 2026 copyright line. Everything below about Cortland comes from that page, read on November 5, 2026, with its quotes exact. The amounts are Cortland Cary's, so another Cortland community may list different ones.

What is Cortland's pet policy?

Cortland Cary welcomes two cats or dogs per apartment home, with a weight limit of 80 pounds per pet. The page says "yes, we are a pet-friendly apartment community" and "we welcome two cats or dogs per apartment home, with a weight limit of 80 pounds per pet." Its Pet Policy pop-up lists a pet fee of $350 per pet and a monthly pet charge of $25 per pet, and the FAQ says "all pet deposits and non-refundable fees must be paid before moving in."

Does Cortland allow emotional support animals?

The Cortland Cary FAQ does not name emotional support animals, but its Equal Housing section says Cortland applies the same guidelines to all residents "unless in the event of reasonable accommodation." The page says service animals are welcome and are not limited by a weight restriction. It does not say whether an emotional support animal falls under that sentence, so the questions below go to the community in writing:

Does Cortland charge a pet fee for an assistance animal?

The Cortland Cary page lists a pet fee of $350 per pet and a monthly charge of $25 per pet, and it does not say whether either applies to an assistance animal. Ask the community in writing which charges, if any, apply, and keep the answer. HUD's own statement on fees is below.

How do you ask Cortland for an emotional support animal?

Cortland Cary's page names reasonable accommodation but publishes no request process, so the request starts with a written message to the community's leasing office. Five steps keep it clean:

1. Contact the community's leasing office before the animal moves in.
2. Ask for its reasonable accommodation process and any form it uses.
3. Put your request in writing and keep a copy of everything you send.
4. Give a letter from your provider when the community asks for documentation.
5. Ask in writing whether the pet fee or monthly charge applies, and keep the answer.

What do HUD's own documents say about an emotional support animal at a Cortland community?

The Fair Housing Act covers Cortland like any other landlord, and HUD's own statement says a housing provider may ask for reliable proof of the disability and the need, but may not charge extra fees or deposits for an accommodation. HUD and the Justice Department's joint statement on reasonable accommodations, dated May 17, 2004 and still on hud.gov when we read it, says a provider "may request reliable disability-related information" when a disability is not obvious, and that "housing providers may not require persons with disabilities to pay extra fees or deposits as a condition of receiving a reasonable accommodation." It adds that a tenant can still be billed for damage the animal causes. The Cortland Cary page lists a $350 pet fee and does not say whether it applies to an assistance animal.

HUD has since changed how it enforces this. It withdrew its 2013 and 2020 assistance animal notices, effective September 17, 2025, and since May 22, 2026 its fair housing office pursues an animal complaint only when the animal is trained to do disability-related work or tasks (HUD's enforcement memo). The Fair Housing Act itself, your right to go to court and state laws did not change, and a 2025 federal decision attached to the memo found that waiving one $400 animal fee was not required on its facts, so fees are decided case by case. Our page on HUD's emotional support animal rules has the documents, and our guide to pet deposits, pet rent and fees for an ESA has the cases.

What should an ESA letter include when you give it to Cortland?

A letter from a licensed provider who evaluated you and can be reached, on letterhead with their license number and a signature, gives a leasing team something it can check. Our free sample ESA letter shows each part, and our guide to who can write an ESA letter covers which licenses count. The quickest route is a therapist, psychiatrist or doctor who already treats you, because they know you and can confirm the letter if Cortland calls. The Cortland Cary page does not list the documents it asks for, so ask the community what it needs to see. The checks anyone can run on a letter are in how to verify an ESA letter.

No provider of your own? In Florida, New Jersey and New York we can book you a live video evaluation with an independent therapist licensed in your state: $120, with $80 back if they can't approve you, and the therapist alone decides on the letter. You can book in Florida, book in New Jersey or book in New York.

Other managers publish different rules. Our guides to Essex, UDR and Willow Bridge read each company's own pages the same way, our study of what 16 large landlords publish about emotional support animals counts all sixteen, and our guide to how PetScreening reviews an ESA request covers the screening service many properties use.

Alongside the letter, ESA Card registration gives your animal a digital ESA Card with its photo, a certificate and a number anyone can check at esacard.com/verify, for $39$59$79$99 once, in about three minutes. It is handy for the everyday questions; the letter from your provider is the document a housing provider can ask for.