Housing discrimination: get the facts

              Arizona Attorney General
Terry Goddard
Educating • Protecting • Empowering
Arizona Consumers
Arizona
Attorney General’s
Office
1275 West
Washington Street
Phoenix, Arizona 85007
602.542.5025
400 West Congress
South Building
Suite 315
Tucson, Arizona 85701
520.628.6504
Outside the Phoenix
or Tucson metro area
800.352.8431
www.azag.gov
HOUSING
DISCRIMINATION
Get The Facts
2 3
March 2008
Not very long ago, Arizonans learned in segregated schools and
ate at segregated lunch counters. Some were refused entry into
other public places based on race. Economic disparity, deed
restrictions and discriminatory attitudes often prevented minorities
from owning homes or living in the neighborhood of their choice.
Across Arizona and much of the nation, when minorities wanted
to buy or rent, they were often told they were not welcome or
were steered to other neighborhoods.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the enactment of the
Fair Housing Act as part of the 1968 Civil Rights Act. The goal
of the Fair Housing Act is to eliminate discrimination. Substantial
progress has been made toward achieving that goal, but we still
have much work ahead in Arizona.
The Attorney General’s Office sees new cases every week
alleging housing discrimination on the basis of race, family status
and disability. Our efforts to investigate and resolve these cases
receive crucial support from the Arizona Fair Housing Partnership,
which brings together government, real estate professionals,
housing providers, lenders, nonprofits and advocacy groups.
Some housing discrimination violations take place because
people are unaware of fair housing laws. Others are deliberate
acts of discrimination. Whatever the reason, we are working
toward the day when fair housing in Arizona is no longer a goal
but a reality.
I will continue to work hard to ensure vigorous enforcement
of fair housing laws and to make sure that consumers, private
landowners, homeowner associations, property management
companies, real estate professionals, RV parks and landlords
understand the fair housing laws and know where to turn for
information or to report a violation. This guide to fair housing,
along with other materials published by my Office, is designed
to help eliminate instances of housing discrimination and to
assist victims of discrimination. If your organization would like a
presentation on fair housing laws, please contact the Attorney
General’s Community Services Program at 602.542.2123 or
communityservices@azag.gov. For more information, visit the
Attorney General’s Web site at www.azag.gov.
Sincerely,
Terry Goddard
Arizona Attorney General
Message from Attorney General
Terry Goddard
4 5
Under the Fair Housing Act it is against the law to engage in the
following activities if done on the basis of a person’s race, color,
national origin, religion, sex, familial status or physical or mental
disability:
• Tell you housing is unavailable when it actually is available.
• Only show you apartments or homes in certain neighborhoods.
• Set terms, conditions or privileges for sale or rental of a dwelling
different from other customers’.
• Provide housing services or facilities different from other customers’.
• Advertise housing to preferred groups of people only.
• Refuse to provide you with information regarding mortgage
loans, deny you a mortgage loan for which you qualify, or impose
different terms and conditions on a mortgage loan.
• Deny you property insurance.
• Conduct property appraisals in a discriminatory manner.
• Refuse to make reasonable accommodations or modifications for
a person with a disability if the accommodation or modification
is necessary to afford such person an equal opportunity to use
and enjoy a dwelling. Examples include accommodations for
assistive aides or animals, accessible parking and minor physical
modifications to existing properties.
• Fail to design and construct multi-family housing in an accessible
manner (applies to housing constructed after 1991).
• Harass, coerce, intimidate or interfere with anyone exercising or
assisting someone else with exercising their fair housing rights.
• Refuse to rent to you or to sell you housing if a realtor is involved in
the transaction.
In Arizona, everyone has a right
to fair housing
Arizona law protects your right to have
a place to live and makes it unlawful
for any person to discriminate in
connection with housing because of
an individual’s race, color, religion,
sex, national origin, familial status or
physical or mental disability.
Discrimination can be obvious and
easily recognized, but many times it
is subtle or apologetic. When people
discriminate against a person, they
sometimes:
• Ask questions that belittle you.
• Imply that they cannot help you.
• Refuse to give you services that they
appear to give others.
• Suggest that you work with
someone else or seek housing
elsewhere.
The Equal Housing Opportunity logo
is displayed by Housing Professionals
who have committed to equal
treatment of everyone. Look for
companies that display this logo:
Fair Housing Act
Housing providers and
professionals include:
• Home Builders
• Apartment Owners
and Management
Companies
• Mobile Home Dealers
• Mobile Home Park
Owners and Operators
• Real Estate Firms
• Leasing Agents
• Lenders and Bankers
• Mortgage Brokers
• Title Companies
• Appraisers
• Title and Home
Insurance Providers
• Home Owners’
Associations
“It is critical that consumers, real estate professionals and regulators be knowledgeable
about Fair Housing and those activities which are illegal under the Fair Housing Act.
Education is our most effective tool to prevent unintentional violations and to arm the
public against those who intentionally discriminate against others.”
Sam Wercinski, Arizona Real Estate Commissioner
6 7
Transactions not covered under
the Fair Housing Act:
• Sale or rental of single family houses
that are not sold or rented through
a broker or through discriminatory
advertising. An owner has the right
to sell or rent directly to whomever he
or she wants, as long as the owner
does not run an ad or make other
discriminatory statements that violate
the Fair Housing Act (such as stating
that the neighborhood has a certain
racial makeup) and does not own
more than three single family homes.
• Rental of apartments or rooms in a
building containing no more than four
units, if one unit is inhabited by the
building’s owner.
• Housing transactions by nonprofit
religious organizations (that give
preference to persons of the same
religion) or private clubs.
Fair Housing Act
Familial Status
The law also protects
families with children
under 18. This category
includes pregnant
women, people arranging
for an adoption and
any person who has
permanent or occasional
custody of children
under 18, such as foster
parents or grandparents.
Housing facilities or
communities specifically
designated for persons
over age 55 and seniors
62 years of age and
over are exempt from
this requirement. The
owners or management
of a housing community
or facility designated
for use by seniors may
legally exclude families
with children.
Disability – Additional
Protections
People with physical,
mental or developmental
disabilities, as well as
people who have HIV/
AIDS-related illnesses or
who are recovering from
alcohol or substance
abuse, receive additional
protections under
the Fair Housing Act.
Housing providers
and professionals
should communicate
with disabled persons
to determine the
most appropriate
and reasonable
accommodation for them.
Persons with disabilities
also have the right to
make improvements to
rented homes at their
own expense if the work
is necessary for them to
live there, as long as they
return the property to its
original condition when it is
vacated.
8 9
Other Resources for Fair Housing Education and Training
Arizona Department of Housing
1110 W. Washington, Suite 310
Phoenix, AZ 85007
www.housingaz.com
602-771-1000
Arizona Center for Disability Law
3839 N. Third Street, Suite 209
Phoenix, AZ 85012
602-274-6287
www.acdl.com
Arizona Fair Housing Center
615 N. 5th Ave.
Phoenix, AZ 85003
602-548-1599
Arizona Multihousing
Association
5110 N. 44th St., Suite L160
Phoenix, AZ 85003
1-800-326-6403
602-296-6200
www.azama.org
Southwest Fair Housing
Council
2030 E. Broadway, Suite 101
Tucson, AZ 85719
520-798-1568
Arizona Attorney General’s Office
Civil Rights Division
www.azag.gov
Phoenix Tucson
1275 W. Washington Street 400 W. Congress, Suite S-215
Phoenix, Arizona 85007 Tucson, Arizona 85701
602-542-5263 520-628-6500
602-542-5002 (TDD) 520-628-6872 (TDD)
877-491-5742 (toll free) 877-491-5740 (toll free)
877-624-8090 (toll free TDD) 877-881-7552 (TDD)
The Civil Rights Division investigates and resolves housing discrimin-ation
complaints. It also mediates and conciliates complaints and
can bring legal action on an individual’s behalf if no solution can be
found prior to litigation being initiated. Most housing discrimination
charges filed with the Attorney General’s Office are considered to be
dual-filed with the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD). There is no cost to file a housing discrimination
complaint with the Civil Rights Division or HUD. Fair housing
complaints must be filed within one year after the discriminatory act(s).
The Attorney General’s Office works in collaboration with other
agencies and organizations to educate and train real estate
professionals, housing providers and consumers.
If you believe you are a victim of housing
discrimination, you can file a complaint at:
10 11
Arizona Department of Real Estate
2910 N. 44th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85018
602-771-7799
www.azre.gov
City of Phoenix Equal Opportunity Department
251 W. Washington, 7th Floor
Phoenix, AZ 85003
602-262-7486, 602-534-1557 (TTY)
www.phoenix.gov
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
600 Harrison Street, 3rd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94107-1387
415-489-6524
1-800-347-3739
415-436-6594 (TTY)
www.hud.gov
Acknowledgements
We want to acknowledge the contributions of many individuals and
groups from throughout Arizona who served on the Arizona Fair
Housing Initiative Steering Committee and helped make this publica-tion
possible.
Funds for this publication were provided by the U. S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development.
The material in this brochure is not copyrighted. Organizations are
encouraged to reprint this booklet or excerpts and do not need to
contact the Attorney General’s Office for permission.
Other publications available
from the Arizona Attorney
General’s Office include:
For more information,
contact: