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| WA State FAIR HOUSING UPDATE: July 2007 |
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Nali Djumba has a Section 8 certificate. When she inquires about an advertised four-plex apartment, the owner tells her "no Section 8 allowed." Does this violate fair housing laws? Whether this is illegal discrimination depends on where the apartment community is located. The federal Fair Housing Act does not cover section 8 voucher holders as a protected class, but local fair housing ordinances do (including City of Seattle, City of Bellevue, and King County). So, if the housing was in one of the areas covered by these ordinances, the owner must treat Nali like any other prospective resident. If she is a qualified resident, the owner cannot refuse to rent to her just because she has a section 8 voucher. The owners of the Rose Garden Apartments offer periodic rental specials to induce applicants to move in. During the same week, they give a free month's rent to new resident Granger but not to new resident Herrera. Is this discrimination? Fair housing laws do not prohibit discounts so long as the discount policy is based on business necessity, available to all applicants, and does not otherwise result in excluding people based on their protected class. If the intent is to offer discounts to increase the number of residents, then a housing provider could offer discounts, so long as all applicants within a specific period of time are offered the same discount. Maybe Granger and other applicants got a June discount, which was no longer available for Herrera and other applicants who applied later that week in July. However, if both residents applied at the same time, or Hispanic applicants were not offered discounts, this is possible discrimination. Here are some best practices: – Put all special offers in writing and ensure that all staff are aware of them. – Make certain all prospects hear about every rent special. – Document all exceptions you make to your regular rent rates. If you offer an apartment for less than other apparently identical apartments, note why. – Establish your rental rates based on factors such as the market, the apartment size, and specific amenities. An applicant is a recent immigrant with no social security number and with little or no employment or rental history in this country. How can owner Dotson make sure that this person will pay the rent and has a good rental history? If you ask a resident who is obviously from another country for proof of his or her legal status, you could risk a fair housing complaint based on national origin. Asking if someone is in the country legally is only acceptable under fair housing laws if you ask every applicant for proof of legal residency-not just certain applicants, based on how they look. Dotson has a right to make sure that residents are able to pay the rent and follow the rules. Although screening criteria commonly uses standard information such as a social security number and past employment or rental history, alternative documents are available to determine if a recent immigrant is able to pay the rent and follow the rules. For an online list of documents that will help you determine an applicant's identity, past rental history, credit history or ability to pay rent, see www.metrokc.gov/dias/ocre/appB.pdf. Resident al Bakar tells the manager that the gardener from a hired company made unpleasant remarks to him because he wears a turban and his accent. The manager decides not to do anything because the gardener is not his employee. Did the manager do the right thing? When a resident complains about harassment by staff (including outside hired staff), management should not ignore the situation. The manager must act in situations such as this that appear to be motivated by a resident's protected class. The manager should definitely check out al Bakar's harassment complaint. Fair housing laws make it unlawful to coerce, intimidate, threaten, or interfere with any person's rights. If a manager knows (or should know) of a harassing, intimidating or threatening situation that violates the fair housing laws, and the manager does nothing to stop the harassing behavior, he might be found in violation of the laws. Failure to investigate, to attempt resolution, or to take action to stop harassing behavior may leave a manager (and also the harassing gardener and his company) open to a fair housing complaint. The manager should make reasonable attempts to stop the gardener's harassing behavior. For more information about how to establish a antiharassment policy, check out the "Tenant on Tenant Harassment Sample Policy" written by the Fair Housing Partners of Washington, available online at www.metrokc.gov/dias/ocre/TT.pdf. KCOCR Fair Housing Home Page Your comments about this Web page Updated: July 6, 2007 King County | DES | OCR | News | Services | Search Links to external sites do not constitute
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