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Washington State FAIR HOUSING UPDATE: July 2008 |
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Is a request for a parking space because of a physical disability a reasonable accommodation or a reasonable modification? Courts have treated requests for parking spaces as requests for a reasonable accommodation and have placed the responsibility for providing the parking space on the housing provider, even if provision of an accessible or assigned parking space results in some cost to the provider. For example, a housing provider must provide an assigned space even though the housing provider has a policy of not assigning parking spaces or has a waiting list for available parking. However, housing providers may not require persons with disabilities to pay extra fees as a condition of receiving accessible parking spaces. Providing a parking accommodation could include creating signage, repainting markings, redistributing spaces, or creating curb cuts. What are the requirements for using fair housing logos and posters? Using the fair housing logo is a great way to show a commitment to fair housing. Many housing providers use the Equal Housing Opportunity logo in their ads and on their written materials to show that they do business in compliance with fair housing laws. The logo graphic (sample below) is available in various sizes online at www.hud.gov/library/bookshelf15/hudgraphics/fheologo.cfm.  HUD requires that owners and managers display a fair housing poster with this logo at rental offices. This applies to rentals covered by the federal Fair Housing Act, and to dwellings rented through a real estate broker/agent. (see 24 CFR 100) The Seattle Municipal Code requires residential property managers and real estate professionals within the city limits to prominently display a letter-sized fair housing poster in their place of business. Failure to display the poster can result in fines. Free color posters with this logo are available from the fair housing agencies for each jurisdiction (also available on their Web sites). Post them in the rental office and in common areas to alert applicants and residents that fair housing is valued at the community. The Sanfords, who have three children, saw an ad for an apartment at Stratford Court with a rent of $960 a month. The rental agent says the base rent is $960 for a household of three, plus $100 for each additional person. Is this discriminatory? The policy of charging more rent for larger households can have a disparate impact on families with children, because the policy can lead to their under-representation. A housing provider should set rent rates based on a reasonable occupancy standard (2 people per bedroom is usually acceptable). If the rent includes utility costs, the housing provider can charge for the actual cost of such expenses. However, an arbitrary fee of $100 per extra person tends to discriminate against families with children. Last year manager Brennan had a resident who made a big deal about his allergies to carpet gases, mold, paint fumes, cleaning products, etc. Brennan decides to ask future applicants if they have allergies. If they do, he turns down their applications or asks them to sign a waiver to any allergy-related claims. Is this discriminatory? Mold and many common cleaning and remodeling products can pose serious respiratory problems for people with environmental sensitivity disability. A chemically sensitive person who moves in during a warm, dry month may not notice mold problems until autumn rains begin. Or the dwelling may cause no problems until maintenance staff use certain cleaning products (many are made with petrochemicals – a common allergy trigger). The fair housing laws prohibit making disability-related inquiries of applicants. It is not legal to ask applicants if they have allergies to cleaning or remodeling products. Brennan cannot turn down qualified applicants who mention chemical sensitivity, any more than he could reject a qualified applicant for being Asian, having children, or being gay. Fair housing laws would not permit Brennan to require applicants to sign a waiver to any allergy-related claims. Also, Brennan must consider any disability accommodation request made by an applicant or resident, and grant it if it is reasonable. King County OCR Fair Housing Home Page | Comments Updated: July ?, 2008 King County | OCR | News | Services | Search Links to external sites do not constitute
endorsements by King County. |