Walking is a major life activity that underpins mobility, independence, and housing accessibility.

Walking is more than just moving from point A to point B. For many people, it’s a thread that stitches together independence, safety, and the everyday rhythms of life. In the world of fair housing and accessibility, that thread is pulled tight by a single concept: major life activities. Let me explain how this idea isn’t just legal jargon, but something that shapes real homes, neighborhoods, and opportunities.

What exactly are major life activities?

In a practical sense, major life activities are the basic functions we rely on to live our daily lives. Think of them as the core building blocks of independence. The list isn’t just whimsical; it’s part of the framework used to understand access and accommodation under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). When policy talk gets dense, this is the kind of thing that helps keep arguments grounded in everyday reality.

Here’s the thing: among these core activities, walking stands out because it directly ties to mobility—the ability to get around, to visit places, to participate in community life, to reach essential services. Walking is a gateway to everything else on the list.

So, what counts as a major life activity?

Broadly, major life activities include:

• Walking (mobility)

• Seeing

• Hearing

• Speaking

• Breathing

• Caring for oneself

• Performing manual tasks

To be clear, budgeting, reading, or networking are important life skills and everyday pursuits. They’re valuable for a well-rounded life, but they aren’t typically categorized as major life activities in the same way walking is. The distinction isn’t about importance; it’s about enabling access to daily living activities that make it possible to navigate housing, work, school, and community life without undue barriers.

Walking as a gateway to participation

Let me walk you through why mobility matters so much in housing.

• Access to the unit: If a building’s entryway has stairs without a ramp, or doorways are too narrow, moving from street to home becomes a challenge for someone who uses a cane, crutches, a walker, or a wheelchair. Simple design choices—gentle ramps, level thresholds, automatic doors, and wide hallways—remove invisible barriers that keep people from even trying to live in a particular residence.

• On-site navigation: Inside a building, stairs, elevators, and corridor widths affect how easily someone can get to the kitchen, bathroom, or a favorite room. When these pathways aren’t accommodating, even well-intentioned communities create friction that isn’t about convenience—it’s about access.

• Proximity to services: Mobility isn’t just about the home itself. It extends to how far someone must travel to reach groceries, medical appointments, schools, or communal spaces. A home with accessible transit options, nearby stores, and safe sidewalks makes a huge difference in daily life.

• Emergency safety: In emergencies, quick and unhindered movement can be a matter of life and safety. Buildings designed with clear egress routes, accessible stairwells, and properly placed alarms serve everyone, not just the fastest or the strongest.

When major life activities are understood this way, it becomes clear why mobility is a central concern in housing policy and design.

Why it matters to landlords, tenants, and communities

Real-world decisions get easier when you frame them through the lens of major life activities. A landlord who appreciates the mobility needs of residents isn’t just following a rule; they’re enabling a better living experience for their tenants. Here’s how that translates in practice:

• Accessibility features aren’t “nice-to-haves.” They’re enablers of independence. A ramp at the entry, a zero-threshold shower, or a bathroom door wide enough for a wheelchair turns a potential barrier into an open door.

• Parking and pathways matter. Reserved accessible parking near the entrance, well-lit routes, and clear signage reduce the daily friction that mobility-impaired tenants face.

• Service and support can be more inclusive. For some residents, accommodations aren’t about changing the house; they’re about changing the environment. This could mean allowing a modification like a grab bar installation, or it could mean adjusting how a lease is structured to accommodate a care plan.

• Community planning echoes this logic. When cities and neighborhoods prioritize curb cuts, smooth sidewalks, and accessible public spaces, walking becomes safer and more feasible for everyone. The home is part of a larger ecosystem, and mobility sits at the center of that ecosystem.

A helpful distinction: major life activities vs. everyday skills

There’s a value in naming the difference. Yes, budgeting and reading are crucial for financial health and lifelong learning. But major life activities focus on foundational functions that enable broad participation in daily life. When a housing provider or a policymaker talks about accessibility, they’re thinking about the core capacities—mobility, sensation, basic self-care—that determine whether a person can live with dignity and independence.

If you’re studying the topic more deeply, this distinction acts like a mental shortcut. It helps you remember where to focus your energy when evaluating a property’s accessibility features. For example, you might not be able to fix someone’s reading list, but you can widen doorways or install an elevator and improve a resident’s ability to move freely within and reach essential services.

Real-world scenarios that illustrate the point

Picture a small apartment building in a mixed-use neighborhood. A resident uses a mobility aid to get around. The entrance has a step—an easy fix would be a ramp and a level sidewalk. Inside, the hallway is narrow, making it hard to maneuver a wheelchair. Here, simple modifications—lowered light switches, widened interior doors, and a bathroom grab bar—transform how the resident can participate in daily life.

Now consider a family with a parent who uses a walker. They’re considering a place near a clinic with accessible transit. If the building has direct, flat paths from the curb to the door, elevators that work smoothly, and bathrooms designed for safety, mobility becomes less of a barrier and more of a background detail. The opportunity to live where you want isn’t a fantasy—it’s a practical outcome of thoughtful design.

Regulatory lens: what the law says in plain language

From a legal standpoint, major life activities are a key hinge point in how housing providers assess requests for accessibility and accommodations. The FHA prohibits discrimination based on disability and requires reasonable adjustments to policies or practices to make housing accessible. The ADA plays a complementary role, especially for public accommodations and certain housing-related services.

What does this mean in everyday terms? If a resident’s mobility needs aren’t met by a property’s layout, a landlord might need to consider accommodations or modifications. This could include allowing installation of grab bars, removing thresholds, or adjusting some rules to make daily living easier. The important idea is not to be punitive or punitive-minded; it’s about removing barriers so everyone can participate fully in community life.

Practical takeaways you can remember

• Walking is a major life activity because it underpins mobility, which is essential for daily living and participation in society.

• Other major life activities include seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, caring for oneself, and performing manual tasks. Budgeting, reading, and networking are important but are not typically treated as major life activities in this legal sense.

• For housing providers, accessibility isn’t a checklist item; it’s a commitment to equal opportunity. This includes physical modifications, design choices, and flexible policies that respect residents’ needs.

• The broader urban environment matters too. Sidewalks, curb cuts, reliable transit, and safe streets all feed into the ability to move around and access housing, services, and community spaces.

A quick memory aid

If you’re trying to keep this straight in your head, think of mobility as the passport to all other daily activities. Walking unlocks access to the rest—seeing a storefront, hearing a street corner’s cues, speaking with neighbors, or caring for oneself. When mobility is supported, independence follows.

A few words on tone, nuance, and staying human

This topic isn’t merely a legal puzzle; it’s about the lived experience of people who deserve safe, accessible homes. The law provides guardrails, but the everyday test is about empathy, clarity, and practical action. When we design or evaluate a building, we’re effectively answering this question: can a person get in, move around easily, and thrive here?

If you’re new to this material, you might feel a bit overwhelmed by the jargon. That’s natural. The core idea is simple: walking matters because it enables people to participate in life. Everything else flows from that.

Where to look for more context

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) resources on accessibility and reasonable accommodations.

• The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards for accessible design, especially as they relate to public and housing-related settings.

• Community planning guides that highlight the role of curb cuts, crosswalks, and transit access in everyday mobility.

Bringing it back to the daily experience

The next time you walk past a building and notice a ramp or a clear door threshold, you’re seeing a practical expression of a principle that matters: mobility—the ability to move through space with minimal friction—is a foundation for independence. That’s why walking earns the designation of a major life activity. It isn’t about one moment of movement; it’s about how movement shapes the entire arc of daily life—from greeting neighbors to getting to a doctor’s appointment, from voting to making a meal, from choosing a home to thriving in a community.

If you’re thinking about housing, design, or policy, keep walking in mind. It’s the most visible, everyday link between a place and a person. And when we respect that link, we’re not just complying with rules—we’re inviting more people to belong, participate, and contribute to the fabric of our communities. Walking, after all, is a universal connector. Let’s treat it that way.