Having a one-size-fits-all approach also can lead to fair housing trouble when it has a discriminatory effect on people protected under fair housing law. One example involves occupancy policies: If they’re too restrictive, they can have a discriminatory effect on families with children.
Solution: There are five steps you can take to minimize discrimination risks when dealing with undocumented aliens:
Legal Risk: “Source of income” discrimination is among the fastest growing areas of fair housing litigation, generating 1,713 complaints in 2022, a year-over-year increase of 39.8 percent, according to the NFHA.
By: Rebekah Near, CEO, Orca Information, Inc.
Situation: A tenant claimed he was sexually harassed by his next-door neighbor, citing a series of incidents in which the neighbor allegedly:
In its Charge of Discrimination HUD alleges that the property manager and owner of a 10-unit apartment complex retaliated against the tenant after the tenant informed the property manager that his unwanted conduct
You Make the Call: Did the tenant have a valid claim for refusing to make reasonable accommodations?
Answer: Yes
Situation: An Idaho landlord adopted a strict policy banning visitors from parking in spots reserved for tenants. In November 2016, two service providers, one black the other white, visited a tenant at the community.
Situation: A Michigan landlord rejected an otherwise qualified African-American applicant after an online check revealed that he had been convicted of a felony in connection with a domestic disturbance four years earlier. While acknowledging the conviction, the applicant insisted that he was fully rehabilitated.
Although source of income isn’t a protected class under the FHA, the contention is that excluding recipients of child support, Section 8 vouchers, unemployment benefits, veterans benefits, etc., has a disparate and discriminatory impact on the disabled and people of certain races, national origins, etc., who disproportionately rely on these source