December 29, 2021
The FHA and HUD have announced a voluntary settlement agreement in a Fair Housing Act complaint in California.
A press release on the HUD official site announces a Conciliation/Voluntary Compliance Agreement with National Community Renaissance, National Community Renaissance of California, Desert Meadows Housing Partners, Victorville Housing Partners, and Cathedral Family Housing Partners, management agents, and owners of four HUD-subsidized apartment complexes in Southern California.
The agreement is meant to close the book on complaints that the property managers “refused to rent to or provide adequate language services for applicants with limited English proficiency (LEP)” according to the HUD official site.
The Fair Housing Act makes it illegal for housing providers to discriminate because of national origin at any stage in the housing process.
Furthermore, the Civil Rights Act contains additional requirements–there is a prohibition against discrimination on the basis of national origin “by recipients of federal financial assistance and requires such recipients to take reasonable steps to ensure that LEP persons have meaningful access to programs and activities”.
In this particular case, site managers were alleged to have refused housing services to Spanish-speaking applicants unless they spoke English, and that applicants must provide their own interpreters.
In addition to being discriminatory against those with limited English, it’s also a violation of federal law to refuse housing services to such applicants while receiving federal funds.
According to the FHA and HUD, this case was reported via a HUD Fair Housing Initiatives Program agency, which filed a series of complaints “after it conducted fair housing tests allegedly showing that on-site managers at the properties refused to rent to LEP persons and told Spanish speaking prospective tenants that they needed to speak English in order to be added to properties’ waiting lists.”
“Individuals and families seeking to obtain decent affordable housing shouldn’t be turned away just because they don’t speak English,” according to Demetria McCain, the HUD Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity.
McCain adds, “Today’s settlement represents HUD’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that housing providers meet their obligations under Title VI and the Fair Housing Act to welcome all applicants, regardless of the language they speak.”
What was the result of the Fair Housing complaints? Under the voluntary agreement, the violators of these particular Fair Housing laws will pay $9,000 and must attend Fair Housing training. They are further required to know and comply with the HUD rules about providing housing services to those with limited English.
Have you experienced discrimination of any kind in the housing process? Contact the HUD Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at (800) 669-9777 (voice) or (800) 877-8339 (Relay). You can also file a housing discrimination complaint at hud.gov/fairhousing.
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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