Published: April 01, 2001

Discrimination in Housing is Illegal

This publication explains what housing discrimination is, what types of housing transactions are covered, and the role of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in countering it.

The Fair Housing Act

You—and all other U.S. residents—have the right to rent or buy a home in any neighborhood if you can afford it. Any effort to block your right to fair housing is called housing discrimination.

The federal Fair Housing Act, signed into law in 1968, gives the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) the power to investigate and take legal action to fight housing discrimination. HUD is the federal agency responsible for enforcing U.S. fair housing laws. HUD also is responsible for national policy and programs that address housing needs and improve and develop viable communities nationwide.

What is housing discrimination?

There is intentional discrimination, in which property owners, landlords or homeowners associations try to keep certain people—including people of color, families with children and the disabled—from living where they want.

For instance, if a landlord rents only to white people and not to people of color, this is housing discrimination. Or, if a real estate agent warns prospective clients that a house is in a neighborhood primarily occupied by African Americans, that too is illegal.

Sometimes, a landlord, seller or real estate agent tells people of color that an advertised rental dwelling or home for sale is no longer available when it still is. The people interested in the rental are turned away with a friendly smile and a handshake, and leave without suspecting that they were victims of housing discrimination.

Businesses such as mortgage companies and insurance firms may discriminate in more subtle ways. They may routinely refuse loans or insurance to prospective buyers of older homes in neighborhoods where home values are low. Often in such neighborhoods, residents and prospective buyers are not white, and so these practices result in fewer loans or insurance policies for people of color.

Protected groups

The Fair Housing Act identifies certain groups—called protected classes—who deserve special protection against housing discrimination.

Discrimination based on race, color, religion or national origin are specifically prohibited. Housing discrimination is illegal if the denial of housing is solely based on the sex of the applicant—male or female—or whether the applicant has children under 18 or is pregnant.

Since 1988, people with physical or mental disabilities have special protections under the Fair Housing Act. Disabilities include hearing, mobility and visual impairments, chronic alcoholism and mental illness, AIDS and AIDS Related Complex and mental retardation.

Property owners and managers are required to allow persons with disabilities, at their own expense, to make reasonable changes to the apartment such as inclined ramps, stair climbing machines or bathroom grab bars to make it more useful. Landlords and managers must also be flexible on rules and policies if necessary, such as allowing a guide dog for a visually impaired tenant to live in a building with a no-pets policy.

Most housing transactions are covered

The law covers a range of housing transactions, including the rental, sale and financing of homes. It prohibits the following practices:

• Misrepresentation—telling lies about the availability of housing or rental, sales, mortgage or insurance terms.
• Purposeful delays and stalling candidates until a desired applicant shows up.
• Unfair differences in rents, deposits or other terms. This includes quoting higher costs for families, people of color or the mentally ill than for whites in order to discourage them from applying.
• Biased sales information and presentations by sellers and real estate professionals.
• Discrimination in mortgage lending. Under the Fair Housing Act and other federal laws, discrimination in residential real estate and credit transactions is illegal, but it is often accomplished in subtle ways, such as through unduly stringent scrutiny of past credit problems.
• Artificially low appraisals by lenders that are intended to discourage sales of older homes in poor neighborhoods, where people of color and single parents often are more likely to be able to afford homes.
• Limiting availability of homeowners insurance and the private mortgage insurance that many lenders demand when candidates have low downpayments on homes.

Transactions that are NOT covered under the Fair Housing Act or other federal laws against housing discrimination are:

• The sale or rental of single family houses not sold or rented through a broker or through discriminatory advertising. An owner has the right to sell or rent directly to whomever he or she wants to, as long as the owner does not run an ad that violates the Fair Housing Act, such as stating that the house for sale is in a white neighborhood.
• Rental of apartments in a building containing no more than four units, if one is inhabited by the building's owner.
• Housing transactions by nonprofit religious or private associations.
• Under the Housing for Older Persons Act of 1995 (HOPA), the owners or management of a housing community or facility designated for use by seniors (55 years and older) may legally exclude families with children.

HUD's role in fighting housing discrimination

HUD's programs to prevent housing discrimination are administered by the Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO).

FHEO investigates and resolves housing discrimination complaints. It mediates and investigates complaints from individuals and brings legal action on their behalf if no solution can be found outside of the courts.

FHEO also conducts large scale tests and audits of rental and real estate markets nationwide to identify patterns of housing discrimination. In partnership with state fair housing organizations, FHEO sends testers of various racial and ethnic backgrounds, including African Americans, Asian/Pacific Islanders, Caucasians, Latinos and Native Americans, as well as families with children and persons with disabilities, to pose as prospective tenants or home buyers. Pairs of testers arrive separately to inquire about the same housing unit, asking the same questions and later recording the responses in an FHEO form. If a significant pattern of housing discrimination is found, FHEO works with the U.S. Attorney General to bring a housing discrimination lawsuit against the property owner.

FHEO also conducts compliance reviews of federally funded housing and ensures that HUD provides equal opportunity in all its programs. FHEO funds public education and outreach programs to teach the public what housing discrimination is and to educate the housing industry so that it will voluntarily comply with fair housing laws.

HUD's Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) helps state and local governments to develop fair housing laws and enforcement programs. Its Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) funds public agencies and private non-profit organizations to assist HUD in enforcement projects including testing, investigation and complaint resolution.

State or local laws

In some areas, state and/or local laws may take precedence in housing discrimination cases. If a housing discrimination complaint is brought in a community with the same or stronger fair housing laws as HUD, the federal agency will refer the complaint to the local agency for investigation. Complainants are notified of the transfer and informed that if the local agency does not begin work on the complaint within 30 days, HUD may take the case back.

Fair housing information and assistance

If you believe that you are a victim of housing discrimination, contact HUD. Although you have up to one year after the incident in which to file a complaint with HUD, it's better to do it as soon as possible while the incident is fresh in your memory.

You should begin the complaint process by calling one of HUD's regional offices. (Call HUD at 1-800-669-9777 to find out how to contact the regional office nearest you.) Prepare your complaint by outlining it in a letter or jotting down the facts you will need when you speak to a HUD representative. Be prepared to give your name and address, the name and address of the person your complaint is against (the respondent), the address of the housing, a short description of how you believe your rights were violated and the date the incident happened. If anyone was a witness to the incident, have their name and phone number handy, too.

In addition to contacting HUD, check state government agencies that deal with housing discrimination or private fair housing groups. If you need help finding a state or local agency, ask for assistance at your local library or call the HUD regional office nearest you. On the Internet, you can find the closest fair housing agency by visiting the National Fair Housing Advocate site (www.fairhousing.com).

Contacting HUD

Call HUD at 1-800-669-9777 for information about housing discrimination or to file a complaint. HUD's web site address is www.hud.gov.

This is one of a series of educational publications titled "Fair Housing: It's Your Right" created by Consumer Action with funds from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development. Other publications in the series include "Know the Signs of Housing Discrimination" and "Fighting Back Against Housing Discrimination." Chinese, Korean, Spanish and Vietnamese versions are available.

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Keywords

Hud, Racial Discrimination In Housing

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U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Notes

Filed Under

Housing   ♦   Discrimination   ♦  

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© 2001 Consumer Action. Rights Reserved.