Realty Times April 23, 2003

Marking 35 Years of Fair Housing
by Lew Sichelman

This month marks the 35th anniversary of the Fair Housing Act, the law that prohibits discrimination in the financing, rental or sale of any dwelling based on race, religion, sex, national origin, handicap or family status.

Although much progress has been made since President Lyndon Johnson the measure was signed into law in 1968, a study last year by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the number of outstanding cases filed with the agency alleging bias indicate more work needs to be done.

The study found that while sales and rental discrimination against African Americans is on the wane, as is sales bias against Latinos, rental discrimination against Hispanics has remained unchanged for the last 25 years.

In addition, there still are a number of cases pending that are more than 100 days old. The current regime at HUD has taken steps to bring the load of "aged" cases down. When it took over just over two years ago, 85 percent of the charges were backlogged. Now, the rate is 29 percent.

But the law requires that all complaints, no matter how complicated, must be processed within 100 days, so, again, there's improvement to be made. To combat bias, the Bush Administration is focusing its efforts on education as well as enforcement. For fiscal 2004, the White House has proposed increasing the fair housing share of the HUD budget by 8 percent, to nearly $50 million.

"Housing discrimination is not only illegal, it contradicts in every way the principles of freedom and opportunity we treasure as Americans," says HUD Secretary Mel Martinez. "As an immigrant myself, I have a profound appreciation for this country's tradition of being compassionate and welcoming to all people. America greatly benefits from its diversity."

In the spirit of the law and to help mark its anniversary, let's take a deeper look at what is required:

  • Sales and Rentals It is illegal to refuse to rent or sell, negotiate, deny a dwelling or otherwise make housing unavailable based on what is known in real estate circles as the "seven deadly sins" race, color, origin, religion, sex, family status or handicap.

    You also cannot set different terms, conditions or privileges; provide different services or facilities, or falsely deny that housing in available. And you can't persuade someone to sell or rent, otherwise known as blockbusting.

  • Lending It is illegal to refuse to make a home loan, refuse information regarding loans, or impose different terms and conditions based on the seven aforementioned attributes. The same goes for appraising a property. In addition, you cannot threaten, coerce, intimidate or interfere with anyone exercising their fair housing rights or anyone assisting someone in exercising those rights.

  • Handicap Housing need not be made available to someone who is a direct threat to the health or safety of others or currently uses illegal drugs. But you can't limit a person who has a physical or mental disability that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

    For example, a building with a "no pets" policy must allow a visually-impaired tenant who has a guide dog to live there.

    Also, you cannot refuse to make reasonable adjustments to the rules for a disabled tenant. If the complex offers unassigned parking, for instances, it must honor a request from a mobility-impaired tenant for a reserved spot near the entrance to her unit.

  • New Construction In multi-family structures with four or more units or an elevator, the law requires that public and common areas be made accessible to persons with disabilities and that door and hallways are wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs. Also, all units must be accessible and contain reinforced bathroom walls that allow the installation of grab bars, kitchens and bathrooms that can be used by people in wheelchairs, and accessible switches, outlets and thermostats.

    If the building has no elevator but still has four or more units, the above rules apply to all ground floor apartments.

  • Families Unless the building or community qualifies as housing for older persons age 62 or above, it is illegal to discriminate against households in which one or more children under the age of 18 reside with a parent, legal guardian or custodian. The same protection applies to pregnant women.

    It must also be noted that while the law covers virtually all housing in the United State, in some circumstances, it exempts owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units, single-family houses sold or rented without the use of an agent or broker, and housing operated by organizations and private clubs that limit occupancy to members.

    But even though you may not be covered, there simply is no excuse not to follow the letter of the law. And don't try to solicit the help of a housing professional to circumvent the rules. They won't, or at least they shouldn't.


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