Published: April 01, 2001

Stop Housing Discrimination In Your Community - Leader’s Guide

CBO leader's guide to accompany the 'Fair Housing' series of fact sheets

A guide to help community-based organization staff educate their clients about housing discrimination. Includes information about how to identify housing discrimination, who and what is covered under the Fair Housing Act, how to file a housing discrimination complaint with HUD and more.

Real Life Cases

Throughout the Leader's Guide, you will find "Real Life Cases."

These housing discrimination cases are based on actual events as reported in newspapers across the country since 1989. All names have been changed.

About the Leader's Guide

Housing discrimination covers many housing areas—from rentals to housing sales—and often occurs in subtle ways with a "smile and a handshake," leaving victims with no idea that they were treated unfairly. While housing discrimination is a complex issue, advocates can assist victims in identifying potentially illegal actions by landlords, real estate brokers, homeowners associations, insurance agents and mortgage lenders.

In 1999, Consumer Action, a national non-profit education and advocacy organization, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) became partners in an effort to educate consumers about the far-reaching and commonplace problem of housing discrimination. The Fair Housing Act of 1968 as amended in 1988 gives the Department of Housing and Urban Development the power to investigate and take legal action to fight housing discrimination. HUD has the primary responsibility for enforcing the Fair Housing Act. HUD also is responsible for national policy and programs that address housing needs and improve and develop viable communities nationwide.

Consumer Action, with funding from HUD, has prepared a series of multilingual educational publications for consumers as well as a national public service advertising campaign featuring Edward James Olmos and Joan Chen.

This guide is designed to assist the leaders of community-based organizations in helping their clients identify possible cases of housing discrimination and, if warranted, in filing a complaint with HUD.

Consumer Action has also created three brochures in the "Fair Housing: It's Your Right" series. The fact sheets (in Chinese, English, Korean, Spanish and Vietnamese) have been posted on Consumer Action's web site (www.consumer-action.org) and are being distributed free to individuals and in bulk to community-based organizations. They are:

• "Discrimination in Housing is Illegal" explains what housing discrimination is, what types of housing transactions are covered under the law and HUD's role in countering it.
• "Know the Signs of Housing Discrimination" contains tips on spotting housing discrimination in a variety of housing transactions, including rentals and sales.
• "Fighting Back Against Housing Discrimination" outlines the process of filing a housing discrimination complaint with HUD.

For more information on these publications and how individuals and agencies can order free copies, please write, e-mail or fax Consumer Action.

Discrimination in Housing is Illegal

What is the Fair Housing Act?

The Fair Housing Act is a law that gives the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) the power to investigate and take legal action to fight housing discrimination based on a person's race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or disability. The Fair Housing Act protects the right of every American to live in any home and in any neighborhood that they can afford.

What is housing discrimination?

Everyone living in the U.S., whether they are citizens or not, has the right to rent or buy a home in any neighborhood they can afford as long as they are treated the same way as other applicants and not discriminated against because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or disability. Any effort to block this right to housing is housing discrimination.

How does HUD fight housing discrimination?

HUD develops national policy and programs that address housing needs, improves and creates viable communities nationwide and enforces fair housing laws using tests, audits and litigation. It also supports state and local fair housing agencies that enforce local laws that are substantially equivalent to the Fair Housing Act. HUD also conducts education and outreach to communities nationwide about housing issues, including housing discrimination.

How are people with disabilities protected under the Fair Housing Act?

Federal law prohibits discrimination against people who have a physical or mental disability that substantially limits one or more major life activities. Examples include hearing, mobility and visual impairments, chronic alcoholism or drug abuse if the person is in recovery, mental illness and retardation and HIV and AIDS. People who have a history or record of such a disability or who are perceived by others to have such a disability are also covered.

Can a landlord ask about my disability?

Landlords are not allowed to ask if you have a disability or illness or ask to see medical records. This is true even if you have an obvious disability, such as a physical impairment that requires you to use a wheelchair. However, if you ask the landlord for reasonable accommodations under the Fair Housing Act, the landlord has the right to ask for evidence that the accommodation is medically necessary because of your disability.

Does my disability give me a better chance of getting an apartment?

Landlords are required to show all available units to all applicants, and must base their decisions to rent to any applicant on the same criteria—usually credit history, past experiences with other landlords and your financial ability to pay the rent. If you have poor credit, or if you have a past record of rowdiness or threatening behavior that has disturbed other tenants, those are valid reasons to reject your application.

I have a disability which requires that I use a wheelchair. I've found a lovely third floor apartment in an older building. Is the landlord required to put in an elevator if I ask him to?

No. Landlords are required to make "reasonable" accommodations for disabled tenants. While grab bars in the bathroom, or a disabled parking spot near the entrance to your apartment might be reasonable, putting an elevator in an existing building would be unreasonable.

Am I allowed to make changes to a rental to accommodate my disability?

Landlords must allow you to make reasonable modifications to your unit or common areas at your own expense, if the changes are needed for you to live comfortably and safely. Any modifications that you make to the living space must be usable and acceptable to future tenants, or removable by you when you leave. This could include lower countertops, special faucets or ramps between rooms.

What is a fair housing test?

To identify housing discrimination, HUD funds local fair housing organizations to send 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, home buyers or mortgage applicants. Two testers - who are racially and ethnically different from each other - arrive separately but provide the same information about themselves and ask the same questions. The goal of the tests is to discover if the testers are treated differently in ways that violate the Fair Housing Act.

Real Life Cases

HUD received housing discrimination complaints about a large multi-state mortgage lender.

To test the lender, two applicants—Lester, an African American, and Bob, a Caucasian—submitted applications. Lester's application showed that he had a slightly higher income, a higher downpayment, greater savings and less debt than Bob. The lender told Lester he would qualify for a $115,000 loan, while Bob ended up qualifying for a loan of $150,000. Based on the disparities, HUD charged the lender with housing discrimination and reached a settlement in which the lender agreed to make $2.1 billion in home loans to minorities and low-to-moderate income families over three years.

What types of housing are covered by the Fair Housing Act?

The law uses the word "dwelling" to describe covered housing, which is described as any building, structure or part of a building or structure that is occupied or intended to be lived in by one or more families. Vacant land offered for sale or lease for the construction or location of residential housing or developments also is covered.

Are any housing transactions exempted by the Fair Housing Act?

A single family home sold or rented by its owner, who does not own more than three single family houses at one time, is exempt from the law. If the owner did not live in the exempt dwelling immediately before its sale, then he or she cannot claim another exempt sale for 24 months. Exempt sellers cannot use any discriminatory ads to promote the sale. Apartments or rooms in an owner-occupied dwelling of fewer than four units also are exempt. No exemption is available if the homes are being rented or sold through a real estate agent.

Real Life Cases

Lin is a single mother.

While viewing a vacant apartment, she mentioned to Laurie, the manager, that she had a daughter. Laurie said that the complex did not rent to families with children because the apartments had only one exit, which posed a fire hazard. Laurie sought help from a local fair housing organization, which conducted four fair housing tests at the apartment complex. The tests revealed ongoing discrimination against families with children. The manager then admitted that she did not rent to families with children, and interviews with apartment residents confirmed the policy. Based on this evidence, the owners and manager agreed to pay Lin and the fair housing organization a total of $26,500 in damages and attorney fees to settle the case.

Are religious organizations exempt from fair housing laws?

To some degree, religious organizations are exempt, in that they are allowed to give preference to members of the same religion when offering housing. Private clubs may operate under the same exemption. However, these organizations are not exempt when renting or selling fair-market-value housing.

Know the Signs of Housing Discrimination

Who is protected by the Fair Housing Act?

There are seven groups ("classes") protected by the law: race, color, national origin, religion, sex (gender), "familial status" (pregnant women and parents or guardians of children under 18) and disability. Some states have extended the protections to include age, sexual preference and marital and student status.

Where can I find out more about state-specific fair housing protections?

Check with your local fair housing, legal services or human rights advocacy organization. Look for the phone numbers in the state and local government sections of your white pages under "housing". On the Internet, you can find out more about state and local housing organizations on the HUD web site (www.hud.gov) or the National Fair Housing Advocate site (www.fairhousing.com).

While apartment hunting, I found a vacancy in a building that allows only older adult tenants. Is this legal?

The Housing for Older Persons Act of 1995 exempts housing designed for older persons from "familial status" discrimination. Such facilities must establish age verification procedures and be able to provide ongoing proof that at least 80 percent of the units are occupied by at least one person 55 or older. All policies, written rules, deed restrictions and lease provisions must state that the housing is intended for older persons.

What housing transactions are covered by the Fair Housing Act?

The Act is broad in its protections, covering the following: refusal to sell or rent; discrimination in home sales; home ads that indicate or imply that certain types of tenants would not be welcome; misrepresentation of availability; failure to allow reasonable accommodations or modification for disabled tenants or owners and lending and property insurance discrimination. Prohibited practices also include:

• Blockbusting: Attempts to panic homeowners into selling their homes at unusually low prices.
• Steering: A practice by real estate agents of showing clients only certain homes and avoiding others.
• Redlining: Refusing to make loans or write insurance policies in areas with high minority concentrations.

Real Life Cases

Sally, a member of a local disabled rights action committee, tried to view a condominium unit in a new building.

She was stymied by a sales agent, who told her that there were numerous ground floor condominiums available, but that all of them had several steps up to the front door. The sales agent told her, "There's nothing here that would be suitable for you." She asked the builder/owner, Sam, to make the complex accessible, but was refused. Following a lawsuit by a local disability law organization, Sam agreed to add ramps to several units, install curb cuts, stripe accessible parking, provide accessible dumpsters and make interior changes, including wider doorways, lever door handles, lower thermostats, accessible cook-tops and bathroom grab bars. Sam also agreed to modify his other buildings still under construction and create a retrofit fund for condominiums he had already sold.

My landlord has been making racist comments about some friends who visit me often. Is this housing discrimination?

Racially bigoted comments by your landlord may be grounds for filing a housing discrimination complaint, if the remarks are deemed to be threatening or otherwise in violation of the Fair Housing Act. Each case must be evaluated on its merits.

What is mortgage discrimination?

It is illegal for banks or other lenders to discriminate when making loans to buy, build, improve, repair or maintain a building. Lenders can base loan decisions and assess applicants using legitimate underwriting standards, such as your income, credit history and outstanding debt and the property's value, but they may not deny loans based on any of the protected categories or based on where the homes are located (redlining). Lending discrimination can be quite subtle and hard to recognize - many cases have been identified through federal and state-funded "field tests" that send pairs of testers with similar credit histories and incomes to a lender, where they apply for the same type of loan.

Real Life Cases

Jonas and his mother, Maggie, were buying a mobile home pending the rental of the lot it sat on.

During an application meeting Jonas' mother mentioned to the property owner that her son had a guaranteed source of income, as he received Social Security disability payments. Although he was prohibited by the Fair Housing Act from asking about the nature of a person's disability, the owner asked about Jonas' disability, noting that the tenants were responsible for the upkeep of their homes and yards. Jonas said his disability was not physical, but the owner persisted, so Jonas told him he had a mental disability. The next day the owner rejected Jonas' application, without giving a reason.

Because moving a mobile home is costly and difficult, the refusal to let Jonas rent space in the park killed the purchase. Jonas filed a complaint with HUD. HUD's investigation revealed that the mobile home park had discriminated against Jonas by denying his application because of his disability. HUD charged the mobile home park owner with discrimination, and the owner subsequently agreed to settle the case by paying Jonas $3,500, attending a fair housing training, adopting a written rental policy providing equal housing and making a commitment not to discriminate against people with disabilities.

What is insurance discrimination?

Insurers that do not use impartial underwriting standards, but base decisions on subjective criteria such as the race of the applicant or the location or age of a home or the racial makeup of its surroundings are engaging in insurance discrimination. Redlining by insurance agents creates a significant barrier to equal opportunity in housing, because most home loans require the buyer to purchase homeowner's insurance.

Fighting Back Against Housing Discrimination

As a tenant, how do I know if I am a victim of housing discrimination?

Landlords can ask for certain assurances that you will be a responsible tenant. For instance, landlords are allowed to ask you to fill out a written application that includes your employment, income and credit history, your Social Security and driver's license numbers and any past evictions or bankruptcies. Landlords can ask you for references, as well. If you have a bad credit history, or you have left other rentals without paying rent or bills, the landlord has a legitimate right to refuse to rent to you. But landlords cannot reject you because of your race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or disability. If, for instance, you are a parent with excellent references and credit history and your application is rejected, you are within your rights to suspect that the landlord will not rent to you because of your children.

What are some signs of housing discrimination?

• Refusing to sell to, rent to or otherwise deal with an interested tenant or buyer. Examples include not returning calls or ignoring firm sales offers.
• Applying different sale, rental, or occupancy terms for different people. Examples include asking people of color to pay higher security deposits.
• The refusal by real estate professionals or companies to serve minority customers, steering customers to certain neighborhoods or making claims about the racial makeup of an area. Examples include a real estate agent who tells clients interested in a certain home that a minority family lives next door or companies that purposely place ads where they are not likely to be seen by minorities.
• Lying about the availability of housing. Examples include telling people of color, families or a disabled person that an apartment is already taken, when it is not.
• Frightening people into renting or selling their property by manipulating their prejudices (blockbusting). Examples include efforts to buy property at below fair market value by telling people that members of a minority group are going to move into the area.
• Discrimination in financing housing by a bank, savings and loan association, or other business. Examples include charging creditworthy minority customers higher interest rates than other customers.
• Harassment. Tenants and homeowners have the right not to be harassed or frightened into abandoning their leases or leaving their homes. Examples include racial and sexual harassment, such as slurs and threats of violence and sexual advances and innuendoes.
• Local zoning laws that have an unfair effect on minorities and are discriminatory in nature. In some communities laws that unreasonably restrict the size or number of occupants in a home can be used to target Latino and Asian households who live with several generations under the same roof.
• Attempts to threaten or intimidate people so that they will not exercise their rights or file complaints under the Fair Housing Act.

Where can I get help with housing discrimination problems?

HUD is charged with enforcing the Fair Housing Act. If you need help quickly to stop the loss of potential housing, HUD will address your complaint immediately. For instance, if you entered into an agreement to buy a house, but the seller backed out because his neighbors put pressure on him not to sell to a person of color, you might lose the home if your complaint is not investigated immediately. In addressing urgent complaints, HUD can obtain assistance from the U.S. Department of Justice by going to court to prevent cancellation of rental or sale until the complaint has been investigated and a finding made.

In many communities, local fair housing organizations that receive funding from HUD are available to help people with housing discrimination problems. To find out if there is a fair housing assistance program near you, visit HUD's web site (www.hud.gov) or the National Fair Housing Advocate site (www.fairhousing.com).

How do I file a complaint with HUD?

Housing discrimination complaints may be filed for up to one year from the incident, however it is best to file your complaint as soon as possible. HUD accepts housing discrimination complaints at its 10 regional offices, where you can also request a copy of its complaint form. (For information on how to contact the office nearest you, call (800) 669-9777.) HUD also will accept a letter outlining your complaint. Include your name, address, the name and address of the person you are complaining about, the address or description of the housing, a short statement of why you think your rights were violated and the date it happened. Send your complaint to the nearest HUD office.

How do I know if a local, state or federal law applies?

When you file a housing discrimination complaint with HUD, it may decide that your local jurisdiction has fair housing laws that are substantially equivalent to the Fair Housing Act. In this case, HUD will refer your complaint to the appropriate state or local agency. If work on your complaint has not begun within 30 days, HUD will take it back.

What is conciliation?

Conciliation means reaching an agreement between the parties to the complaint. While HUD (or the state or local agency) investigates your housing discrimination complaint, it will at the same time try to help you (the complainant) reach a conciliation agreement with the other party (the respondent). If an agreement is reached, it will be legally binding.

What does HUD do during and after the investigation of a housing discrimination complaint?

Unless a conciliation agreement is reached, HUD will continue to investigate your complaint. HUD investigators will talk to the parties and appropriate witnesses and review all documents that are relevant to the investigation.

You will be notified if HUD finds reasonable cause that discrimination took place. Within 120 days of that decision, you will have an administrative hearing, held before an administrative law judge (ALJ). ALJs are professional hearing officers who work for government agencies and enforce powers given the agencies under law.

Do I have to have an administrative hearing on my case?

You - and the respondent - have the right to decline the administrative hearing and instead have the case heard in Federal District Court. Whichever avenue is chosen, there is no cost to you, the complainant, unless you choose to be represented by your own attorney.

How does an administrative hearing differ from a court case?

The ALJ cannot order punitive damages, but they may be awarded in federal court. The ALJ can issue a decision which is subject to review by the Secretary of HUD or by a federal court. If discrimination is found, the ALJ can order the guilty party to:

• Pay you money for actual damages and compensatory damages for the humiliation and suffering caused by the discrimination. Actual damages means money you lost as a direct result of the discrimination.
• Provide relief - such as allowing you to rent or buy the dwelling.
• Pay the federal government a civil penalty.
• Pay your attorney's fees and costs.

If I decide to have an administrative hearing, do I need a lawyer?

It is your choice to hire a lawyer to represent you in an administrative hearing. In meetings with the ALJ, HUD's attorneys will be present to represent the public interest, not yours. Your personal interests will be best represented by your own attorney. Each side has the opportunity to present evidence and testimony from witnesses.

Does filing a complaint with HUD mean I can't file a complaint in Federal District Court?

If you have not signed a conciliation agreement or the government has not begun an administrative hearing within two years after the housing discrimination occurred, you may bring a civil lawsuit at your own expense in Federal District Court. You retain this right even if you have filed a complaint with HUD. If you cannot afford to hire an attorney, seek assistance from your local legal aid society or ask the court to appoint an attorney for you. Legal aid organizations exist in many communities to provide low income people with free (pro bono) legal counsel.

Am I entitled to a reconsideration of an administrative hearing decision, or to appeal the decision in a court case?

ALJ decisions and Federal District Court decisions can be appealed. You, the government or the respondent can seek review of the decision by a higher level in the agency or by an appeals court. In the case of administrative hearings, any of the parties may ask for the case to be reconsidered by a higher level within the agency or by a court. The losing parties in a Federal District Court case may ask for the decision to reversed by filing an appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Fair Housing Information and Assistance

How do I contact HUD?

You can call the agency's toll-free assistance line at 1-800-669-9777.

Where can I obtain a fair housing complaint form?

Call HUD's assistance line (1-800-669-9777) and request that one be mailed to you Consumer Action will be distributing the forms in Chinese, English, Korean, Spanish and Vietnamese. Or you can print out a form or fill out an online complaint form on HUD's web site (http://www.hud.gov/complaints/housediscrim.cfm). This web page also has information on where to send your complaint form.

How can I locate the appropriate state and local agencies that deal with housing discrimination?

Government fair housing organizations can be found in your phone directory within the appropriate government pages, under "housing". In many communities, listings for community services, including housing advocacy, can be found in a special section of the yellow pages directory. Check your local library for guidebooks that list local fair housing advocacy organizations.

On the Internet, you can find lists of fair housing agencies on the HUD web site (http://www.hud.gov) or on the National Fair Housing Advocate site (http://www.fairhousing.com).

Where can I find more information about housing discrimination?

HUD has partnered with Consumer Action to conduct a nationwide public education campaign to reduce housing discrimination. The campaign includes multilingual television and radio public service announcements featuring Edward James Olmos and Joan Chen, designed to alert viewers to the many forms of housing discrimination and encourage people who feel they've been victims of housing discrimination to file a complaint with HUD.

HUD and Consumer Action have also created a series of free multilingual consumer education publications to help people understand housing discrimination. The fact sheets, posters and videos are being distributed for free to a wide range of community-based and non-profit organizations as well as state and local government offices, churches, health clinics and other public centers.

See the introduction of this manual to find out more about the free materials and how to request an order form.

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Keywords

Hud Leaders Guide, Housing, Discrimination

Sponsors

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

Notes

Filed Under

Housing   ♦   Discrimination   ♦   Workshops/trainings   ♦  

Copyright

© 2001 Consumer Action. Rights Reserved.