Fair housing is the right of individuals and families to access the housing of their choice without being subjected to forms of discrimination prohibited by law. As a landlord, you need to be aware of local, state, and federal laws prohibiting housing discrimination. This chapter will cover fair housing laws and how they apply to you as a housing provider.
As a housing provider, one of the most potentially expensive mistakes you can make is to violate fair housing laws. Consequences for violations or perceived violations of the Fair Housing Act can include having an administrative complaint filed against you with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) or the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC). A state or federal lawsuit may also be filed against you by a consumer who believes you have discriminated against them.
Victims of housing discrimination can win economic, non-economic, and punitive damages. Victims can be awarded out-of-pocket costs incurred while obtaining alternative housing and any additional costs associated with that housing. Non-economic damages for humiliation, mental anguish, or other psychological injuries may also be recovered.
Housing discrimination cases can also result in the prevailing plaintiff winning attorney’s fees. Even if you prevail in defending yourself in a fair housing discrimination case, it may cost you time and money and can hurt your professional reputation. You can protect yourself by adopting tenant screening policies and property management practices that do not discriminate or otherwise violate fair housing laws.
In addition, housing providers who violate fair housing laws can be subjected to civil penalties, government monitoring, injunctions, and loss of tax credits. Federal civil penalties that apply to violations of the Fair Housing Act can reach $21,663 for a first violation, $54,157 for a second violation within the preceding five years and $108,315 for violating the Act two or more times in the previous seven years. These sobering potential penalties emphasize the importance of understanding your responsibilities and liabilities as a housing provider.
If someone files a discrimination complaint against you, you will receive a letter from the administrative agency which received the complaint. You will be given a copy of the complaint with the allegations and will be given an opportunity to respond to the allegations in writing.
If you have a complaint filed against you, you will want to seek proper legal advice from an attorney. Be careful how you respond to a tenant who has filed a complaint against you. It is illegal to retaliate against someone for filing a complaint. It is illegal to threaten, coerce, intimidate, or interfere with someone exercising their fair housing rights or filing a complaint with an administrative enforcement agency. It is also illegal to threaten, coerce, intimidate or interfere with witnesses. Retaliation against a complainant will compound your legal liability.
It is important to maintain complete and accurate records and documentation with names, dates, and details regarding the allegations to help prove your case. It is easy to forget important details, so as soon as you can, write a narrative and timeline of the events which led up to the discrimination complaint being filed. You will want to collect the contact information for any witnesses.
The party filing the complaint with PHRC or FHEO is called the complainant and the party being accused of discrimination is called the respondent. If the complaint has been filed with PHRC or FHEO, then the agency will investigate the allegations and will also provide an opportunity for both parties to conciliate (or settle) the complaint. A conciliation is a compromise of sorts to end the administrative complaint process. A conciliation agreement will typically be made public. If the two parties cannot agree to a conciliation, then the investigating agency will issue a finding. If a finding of “no probable cause” for discrimination is made, then the administrative complaint process ends with no finding of discrimination. A complainant can still choose to pursue a lawsuit in either state or federal court as long as it is within the statute of limitations. If a conciliation agreement was signed, then the complainant will not be able to file a lawsuit in state or federal court.
If a finding of “probable cause” of discrimination has been made, then the investigating agency will issue a charge of discrimination against the respondent. After a finding has been issued, there will be a hearing and the case will be heard in front of an administrative law judge.
If the judge rules against you, you may find yourself responsible for any of the following:
Even if you win the case and a “no probable cause” finding is made or a lawsuit ends in your favor, you will have incurred attorney’s fees, lost time, and possibly experienced much frustration.