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Washington State FAIR HOUSING UPDATE |
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by Rob McKenna, Washington State Attorney General Washington is home to many citizens with serious disabilities. These disabilities make it much more difficult to live independently, leaving these people to rely on family members or professional care-givers, while they long for the feeling of self-sufficiency that would come from living on their own. This is something that you, as apartment owners, have the unique ability to put right. Unfortunately many of our disabled residents have a difficult time finding apartments that have the features they need to live independently. To live on their own, those with disabilities require units with special features that, over the years, builders have been adding to many apartment complexes. Some may need a fully accessible unit with amenities like light switches in accessible locations, while others may only need to be on a first floor or in a building with an elevator. I urge you to use a critical, free service – The National Accessible Apartment Clearinghouse (NAAC) – to market your vacant, accessible units to people with disabilities. The NAAC maintains the only national database of apartments specifically designed for renters with special needs. Because of sponsorships and generous donations, this service is free to apartment owners – and it only takes minutes to advertise your vacant units. Once your properties are listed, those with disabilities will discover them when they visit the NAAC web site, fax a request or call the NAAC hotline looking for an accessible unit in the Puget Sound area. This is an incredibly effective way to match special units with the appropriate tenants. The NAAC database includes more than 155 cities and suburbs and is regularly mentioned in publications that target this market niche, including "UNITS," "Wheelchair Access & News," "For Rent Magazine," "Disability Rights" and "Kiplingers." The process to register apartments is simple. If you own a vacant unit that you think might meet the needs of someone with a disability, you may register it at the NAAC Web site. It will take you through a simple process, confirming that your unit or units fit certain requirements. Once your apartments are entered into this national database, they will consistently appear in searches conducted by renters looking for apartments that fit their access requirements. On a national basis, NAAC routinely receives up to 500 queries via phone or e-mail every month from prospective renters – its online database is searched more than 8,000 times. But even though our state is home to many residents with serious disabilities, there are currently fewer than 100 local units currently registered in NAAC's database. Please take a few minutes today to participate in this terrific, win-win program. Our friends and family members with disabilities will win when they get a chance to live independently. And property owners will win by matching renters with previously vacant units. To find out more and to register your property, go to www.accessibleapartments.org. Reprinted with permission from RHA Update and State Attorney General McKenna. OCR Fair Housing Home Page | Comments Updated: July 1, 2008 King County | OCR | News | Services | Search Links to external sites do not constitute
endorsements by King County. |