April 28, 2016
April is Fair Housing Month, and as the month winds to a close, there are still a variety of government actions involving violations of federal fair housing law-actions taken against landlords, lenders, and others associated with housing.
We report on these issues as press releases are issued from the Department of Housing and Urban Development for several reasons. The most important of those reasons is to raise awareness of Fair Housing laws and to remind our readers that the first line of defense against violations of the Fair Housing Act is often found at the consumer level.
Those who report housing discrimination complaints to HUD help end future discrimination as well as get government action on the case at hand. Fair Housing Act violations affect everyone–borrowers, buyers, renters, lenders, etc. Just because a particular case does not involve a home loan doesn’t mean it’s not relevant to those seeking housing, or selling their homes to those who are.
One of the most recent cases involves HUD charges brought against a landlord for allegedly discriminating against families with children. According to HUDNo.16-058, “The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is charging the owner of a Springfield, Massachusetts rental property with violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent an apartment to a husband and wife with children. The landlord was also charged with printing discriminatory statements in his lease and retaliating against the family after they complained.”
Federal law in the Fair Housing Act makes it, “unlawful to deny or limit housing because a family has children under the age of 18, to make statements that discriminate against families with children, and to retaliate against any person for exercising rights under the Fair Housing Act” according to the HUD press release.
“No family should be denied the chance to rent the home of their choice or have to live in fear of losing their home simply because they have children,” said Gustavo Velasquez, HUDs Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, who was quoted in the press release. He adds, “This charge sends a clear message that HUD is committed to protecting the housing rights of families with children.”
HUD began investigating the incident after the parents of a two-year-old child “filed a complaint with HUD claiming that the landlord denied them the opportunity to rent an apartment in the four-unit property because, according to the landlord, the property contained lead hazards and was therefore unsuitable for children under the age of six. The complainants were already residing in an apartment in the building with the wifes mother at the time they attempted to rent their own apartment”.
The press release adds that HUD’s charges include allegations that the landlord “told the family that he would not rent an apartment to them because they had a child under the age of six and were also expecting another baby”.
Renters or buyers who have experienced discrimination such as this should file a complaint with HUD via the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at (800) 669-9777 (voice) or (800) 927-9275 (TTY).
Do you work in residential real estate? You should know about the free tool offered by FHA.com. It is designed especially for real estate websites; a widget that displays FHA loan limits for the counties serviced by those sites. It is simple to spend a few seconds customizing the state, counties, and widget size for the tool; you can copy the code and paste it into your website with ease. Get yours today:
http://www.fha.com/fha_loan_limits_widget
Joe Wallace has been specializing in military and personal finance topics since 1995. His work has appeared on Air Force Television News, The Pentagon Channel, ABC and a variety of print and online publications. He is a 13-year Air Force veteran and a member of the Air Force Public Affairs Alumni Association. He was Managing editor for www.valoans.com for (8) years and is currently the Associate Editor for FHANewsblog.com.
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