How the Fair Housing Act Protects You from Housing Discrimination
So, you're considering property, either to purchase or rent. Until the subject of your child comes up, everything might seem to be going well. Or maybe the subject of your unmarried partner comes up and the landlord or seller discovers you two plan to move into the new property together. Ethnicity, disability or religion are factors you can easily substitute into a similar scenario. At any rate, the landlord or seller subsequently ends up denying your offers, through no fault of yours or any proof that you're unable to afford the property in question.
This is a situation where the Fair Housing Act, or FHA, can be applied. The 1960s ushered in the advent of federal fair housing laws in the United States. It's logical that this was a time for the creation of progressive laws, since desegregation of racially-static neighborhoods was also taking place during this time.
1968 was the year the Fair Housing Act was written into law. Protection from a seller's or landlord's discrimination in the realm of house sales or rentals was its main purpose. As opposed to their personal background, the Act's goal was primarily to create a housing market where the only factor that could restrict a buyer or renter from obtaining the dwelling place of their choice was lack of financial resources.
The Fair Housing Act prohibited housing discrimination based on race, color, religion and national origin when it was originally created. Sex also became a protected class six years later in 1974. Also added were disability and familial status, as it relates to the existence of children in a household, in 1988. The federal Fair Housing Act is identical to many states' fair housing laws. Sexual orientation is even a protected class in states like California, which have more inclusive laws than even the federal Act.
A complaint needs to be filed with the Housing and Urban Development office (HUD), if you believe you have experienced housing discrimination. The Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) investigates these complaints. FHEO will schedule a hearing before a HUD administrative law judge who will ultimately decide the case in question, if FHEO determines there is reasonable cause for the complaint.
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