Expanding the conversation about discrimination in housing

If the alleged discrimination is covered under the law for individuals who meet the basic requirements (such as race, sex, religion, familial status, etc.), and if the complaint were filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), an investigation would proceed with a federal investigator.

If a complaint is filed with a fair housing organization or a civil rights attorney, they would have instituted an investigation to determine if the complaint is applicable under the law, and take whatever steps would be necessary to resolve the complaint. It is possible that a complaint would be filed with both HUD and another entity.

I’ve read your column for some time now and always found your answers to homeowners’ questions to be succinct and informative. Until now. People who are discriminated against in housing (and, why the law was written and approved by Congress) are often unaware of their rights.

I imagine that your answer could have been better written. My feeling is that many attorneys who are otherwise skilled in their areas of expertise are surprisingly ignorant of the law as well as the extent to which their answers were insufficient to the people who asked for their help.

A: Thank you for your comment and for reading our column regularly. We believe that you are referring to a column we recently wrote about a couple living in a Florida homeowners association and their problems with the association.

In the letter, the writer mentioned ongoing problems with the management of the association. She felt she was being treated poorly and their grievances weren’t being seriously considered or resolved.

We are certainly aware of the discrimination laws, and the federal agencies tasked with enforcing them. Should we have mentioned it? Perhaps, though our correspondent didn’t refer to any specific events that merited that consideration. True, the letter revealed that the association was not friendly to working couples of different backgrounds. But there was no mention of specific instances of racial, sexual or religious discrimination by the association.

We assumed the management company was being highly unprofessional. It’s bad business, but not illegal.

So, we might have missed the real issue and appreciate you raising discrimination as a real concern, and perhaps it’s the real reason she reached out. Housing discrimination of any sort should never be tolerated and anyone who feels they have been a victim should push back hard.

What is housing discrimination? As a general rule, when a landlord, seller or homeowners association targets a person or people due to their race, sex, religion, or family status, that’s discrimination. It happens in ways that are overt and insidious. For example, a 2021 study by Freddie Mac shows that Black and Latino homeowners are twice as likely to get a low appraisal as a white homeowner. Or, a landlord tells a Black or Hispanic renter that an apartment is already rented — and then rents it to the next white family that comes through. There are a million ways this could play out, negatively affecting people of color.

As you mentioned, the aggrieved party may file a complaint with various federal agencies and, in some states, with state agencies that deal with housing discrimination issues. They may also have legal rights to go against the landlord, seller or homeowners association.

You can file a complaint with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) online or call HUD’s Housing Discrimination Hotline: 800-669-9777. (Get information on filing a fair housing discrimination complaint in Florida at https://fchr.myflorida.com/fair-housing. For other states, do an internet search for “fair housing discrimination complaint” and your state.)

Let’s assume that the homeowners association was picking on the couple that wrote to us because of their race, sex, or religious affiliations. In this case, federal laws might protect those homeowners against discriminatory practices. That association could face an investigation by federal, and in some cases, state authorities into their activities. The association could face fines or even a judgment requiring them to abide by fair housing laws and desist from any discriminatory practices.

The association management company could also face legal liability. They may not be able to shield themselves from legal problems by claiming that they were acting on behalf of the association and not in a personal capacity.

It’s helpful to remember that homeowner associations are subject to federal and state laws governing their actions, even when those laws cover narrow activities by the board of directors of an association or its management company. If this is happening to you, or has happened to you, please don’t let it go. Call HUD and talk with someone who can give you insight into whether what you’ve experienced is covered by existing federal or state laws.

(Ilyce Glink is the author of “100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask” (4th Edition). She is also the CEO of Best Money Moves, a financial wellness technology company. Samuel J. Tamkin is a Chicago-based real estate attorney. Contact Ilyce and Sam through her website, ThinkGlink.com.)