Navigating Public Housing - National Fair Housing Month Special Issue - April 2018

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SPECIAL ISSUE

ANNIVERSARY

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Why April is Fair Housing Month EBONY HALL

The Department of Housing and Urban

prevalent issues during April, bringing you

Development has designated April as

resources provided by HUD. We hope they

National Fair Housing Month for a couple

will serve as reminders to us all that "fair

of reasons. On its website, HUD says the

housing means that every person can live

month is time for people to come together

free."

to "recommit to that goal which inspired us in the aftermath of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s assassination in 1968: to eliminate housing discrimination and create equal opportunity in every community."

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Fair Housing Act. Navigate Affordable Housing Partners wants to highlight

PHOTO BY: ALLEE SANGIOLO

FAIR HOUSING...

IT'S YOUR RIGHT

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LGBT Access

HUD IS CHARGED WITH PROMOTING THE FEDERAL GOAL OF PROVIDING DECENT HOUSING AND A SUITABLE LIVING ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL. -HUD FINAL RULE ON EQUAL ACCESS

Last year, a federal judge ruled that the Fair

failure to conform to stereotype norms

Housing Act protects those who are LGBT. The

concerning to or with whom a woman should be

ruling was in the case of Rachel Smith, who is

attracted, should marry, and/or should have

transgender, and her wife, Tonya Smith. The

children is discrimination on the basis of sex

couple married in 2010. They have two children.

under the FHA.'"

According to the Washington Post, they found a townhouse in Boulder, Colorado they could

"The Fair Housing Act does not specifically

afford.

include sexual orientation and gender identity

"After the Smiths got home, the landlord

as prohibited bases. However, discrimination

emailed them stating that “they were not

against a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender

welcome to rent the Townhouse” because the

(LGBT) person may be covered by the Fair

other family was concerned about the

Housing Act if it is based on non-conformity

children and “noise.” According to the ruling,

with gender stereotypes." -HUD

the landlord also said she and her husband have “kept a low profile” and 'want to

Any housing provider receiving funding from HUD

continue it’ that way.”

or with loans insured by the Federal Housing

-Fred Barbash, The Washington Post

Administration is subject to HUD's Equal Access

The landlord went on to call the couple's

Rule. HUD gives numerous examples of how

relationship "unique," adding that the women's

discrimination against LGBT persons looks. On

"status would be the talk of the town."

the next page, we'll review some of them in a format that is easy to share with your staff. Try

Federal Judge Raymond Moore ruled in favor of

asking the question in bold print and then

the plaintiffs. In his ruling, he wrote

discussing the answer below it. It can be a good

"that discrimination against women (like them) for

reminder of Equal Access.

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Examples of Discrimination Against the LGBT Community FROM HUD A gay man is evicted because his landlord

An underwriter for an FHA-insured lender is

believes he will infect other tenants with

reviewing a loan application by two males; both

HIV/AIDS. Why is this illegal?

incomes are being used as the basis for the

This situation constitutes illegal disability

applicants’ credit worthiness. The underwriter

discrimination under the Fair Housing Act

assumes the applicants are a gay couple and, as

because the man is perceived to have a disability,

a result, denies the application despite the fact

HIV/AIDS.

that the applicants meet all requirements for the loan. Why is this illegal?

A transgender woman is asked by the owner of

This violates HUD’s Equal Access Rule, which

her apartment building not to dress in women’s

prohibits FHA-insured lenders from taking actual

clothing in the common areas of the property.

or perceived sexual orientation into consideration

Why is this illegal?

in determining adequacy of an applicant’s income.

This is a violation of the Fair Housing Act’s prohibition of sex discrimination.

A property manager refuses to rent an apartment to a prospective tenant who is transgender. Why is this illegal?

If the housing denial is because of the prospective tenant's non-conformity with gender stereotypes, it constitutes illegal discrimination on the basis of sex under the Fair Housing Act.

A female prospective tenant alleges that a landlord refused to rent to her because she wears masculine clothes and engages in other physical expressions that are stereotypically male. Why is this illegal?

If true, this may violate the Fair Housing Act’s prohibition of discrimination based on sex.

If you believe you have experienced (or are about to experience) housing discrimination because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status or disability, you may contact HUD's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity for help at (800) 669-9777. You may also file a housing discrimination complaint online.

Additionally you may contact your local HUD office for assistance with alleged violations of HUD’s Equal Access Rule and other program regulations.

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3 TOURS. 2 PURPLE HEARTS. 1 EVICTION NOTICE.

When my landlord found out I had Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), I received an eviction notice. That’s when I called HUD for help. If you feel that you’ve been discriminated against because of a mental or emotional injury or disability, report it to HUD or your local fair housing center.

Fair Housing is your right.

Visit hud.gov/fairhousing or call the HUD Hotline 1-800-669-9777 (English/Español) *Variation of a HUD poster about housing discrimination

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protecting the rights of those who protect us all EBONY HALL

There are many stories of housing discrimination against those who have defended our freedom. One such case of discrimination was against a disabled veteran in Moore, Oklahoma. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says the landlords of a rental home there violated "the Fair Housing Act by denying the reasonable accommodation requests of their tenant, a veteran with disabilities."

Reasonable accommodation & the facts of the case The charge itself states that in 2015, the veteran applied for a lease. The veteran has an emotional support animal, a dog, "to improve the symptoms of his PTSD and MDD." The man's dog, according to the charge, "improves his insomnia, gets him out of the house because he has to walk the dog, improves his mood, and provides comfort and support because he has a limited social system."

The veteran asked to have the $250 pet deposit Photo by Gerhard Höllisch

waived because the dog is an emotional support animal. The leasing consultant said they would

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need a letter from the applicant's doctor. The

accommodations violates the Fair Housing Act. The

veteran got the letter and turned it in. Later that

agency mandated the following:

same day, the leasing consultant replied to the veteran in writing, " ... unfortunately my broker said only service dogs are waived. I'm sorry I tried."

The veteran questioned this and submitted information about the validity of his "reasonable accommodation request," but the leasing consultant denied him again. He ended up paying the $250 pet deposit for his emotional support dog and moved in. He would question the denial of his "reasonable accommodation request" again. He even submitted an email with "three links to websites, including HUD's website, which explained a housing provider's duty to waive deposits for

"Respondents and their agents, employees, successors, and all other persons in active concert or participation with it, take all affirmative steps necessary to remedy the effects of the illegal, discriminatory conduct described herein and to prevent similar occurrences in the future."

"Requires Respondents to attend training that addresses the Fair Housing Act's prohibitions against disability discrimination;" Awards damages to fully compensate the veteran of damages caused by the landlords Awards a civil penalty of $16,000 for each violation "Awards such additional relief as may be appropriate under 42 U.S.C. § 3612(g)(3)."

emotional support animals."

Stock photo

The leasing consultant replied "that she was advised by their local counsel that the deposit did not have to be waived. Additionally, she replied that she assumed the veteran accepted their decision to not

What you can and cannot do

waive the pet deposit fee when he signed the lease and moved into the property."

The Fair Housing Act prohibits housing providers from denying or limiting housing to people with

The veteran filed a complaint.

disabilities. It also prevents providers from refusing to make "reasonable accommodation" in policies or

HUD argued that as a result of the leasing agent's

practices for people with disabilities. This includes

actions, the veteran "suffered actual damages

waiving pet fees for persons with disabilities who

including, but not limited to, physical and

use assistance animals."

emotional distress and out of pocket expenses."

According to HUD, disability is the most common HUD's mandates

basis for fair housing complaints. People filed more than 4900 disability-related complaints last year.

HUD has declared that this chain of events

They accounted for almost 60% of all fair housing

regarding the veteran's request for reasonable

complaints.

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Fair Housing Quiz

True or False?

The Fair Housing Act’s design & construction requirements apply only to federally subsidized rental housing.

The Fair Housing Act’s design and construction requirements apply to 100% of the dwelling units in a building with an elevator.

Under the Fair Housing Act’s requirements, all swimming pools must have a ramp into the pool.

Housing that is designed in compliance with any state or local building code’s accessibility requirement is also deemed to comply with the Fair Housing Act’s design and construction requirements.

The Fair Housing Act’s design & construction requirements require that there be an accessible route to all units, and not just to accessible units.

If a condominium unit is designed in compliance with the Fair Housing Act’s design and construction requirements, a builder does not have to alter a unit’s design to provide additional features of accessibility (e.g. installation of grab bars, extra wide doors), even if the disabled buyer agrees to pay for the additional accessibility.

Persons who must comply with the Fair Housing Act’s design and construction requirements may include architects, builders, developers, engineers and landscape architects.

Housing that is covered by the accessibility requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, is not covered by the Fair Housing Act’s design and construction requirements because the accessibility requirements of Section 504 are more stringent than those of the Fair Housing Act. The Fair Housing Act’s requirements require that units be fully accessible.

For sites having unusual terrain or site impracticality, the Fair Housing Act’s design & construction requirements do not apply.

*This is a HUD Fair Housing Quiz

Answer Key: 1.False 2.True 3.False 4.False 5.False 6.False 7.True 8.False 9.False 10.False

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ARREST VS CONVICTION HUD Notice PIH 2015-19 offers

Some PHAs have adopted

guidance for PHAs and owners of

lookback periods that limit what

federally-assisted housing on

criminal conduct is considered

excluding the use of arrest

during the screening process

records in housing decisions. Here

based on when the conduct

are some examples of "best

occurred and/or the type of

practices" as outlined by HUD in

conduct. For example, when

the notice:

screening HCV applicants, one

Many PHAs have adopted written admission policies that limit their criminal record screening to assessments of conviction records.

Some PHAs allow public housing and Housing Choice Voucher applicants to address and present mitigating circumstances regarding criminal backgrounds before admission decisions.

PHA has adopted a twelvemonth lookback period for drugrelated criminal activity and a twenty-four month lookback period for violent and other criminal activity that threatens the health, safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment of the premises by other residents..

There are several other examples that you may want to review. You can read the notice here.

WATCH NOW

ARREST VS CONVICTION

FROM HUD

"..arrest records may not be the basis for denying admission, terminating assistance or evicting tenants...”

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IT TAKES A WHOLE VILLAGE Providing homes for children

We've all heard the saying, "It takes a whole village to raise a child." It comes from an African proverb, and according to Afriprov.org, this proverb exists in many African languages.

"The responsibility for raising a child is shared with the larger family.. Even the wider community gets involved such as neighbors and friends."

Of course, this proverb isn't written in the Fair Housing Law, but HUD takes allegations of the discrimination against families with children seriously. Violations of the law can be expensive and damage your agency's reputation. For example, the former owners of an apartment complex had to pay $170,000.

The fine stemmed from a lawsuit alleging "defendants instituted policies at the Reserve.. that discriminated against families with children. The lawsuit also alleged that a family was forced to leave.. after they complained to management about the overly-restrictive policies."

"MANY PARENTS ARE ALREADY STRUGGLING TO FIND AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR THEIR FAMILIES, AND THEY SHOULD NOT ALSO HAVE TO FACE DISCRIMINATION BECAUSE THEY HAVE CHILDREN." -DOJ

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are you for REAL? Have you heard of online certification for emotional support animals? Some of these sites offer "prequalification" in as little as five minutes and offer plans starting at $10. Certification was a topic at the National Affordable Housing Management Association's (NAHMA) Winter Meeting in D.C. Managers wanted to know, "do I have to accept this?"

The panel at NAHMA expects that HUD will offer "strict, swift guidance" on this matter.

In the meantime, the panel says you cannot mandate the use of your form. You also cannot ask questions.

Bottomline.. you must accept whatever verification they give you. You can also verify the authenticity for yourself by following up with the person who signed it.

We had a compliance issue. I called Navigate, and their staff ran our compliance department.

PUBLIC HOUSING CONSULTANTS We have over 200 years of combined Public Housing experience. Post-close RAD Compliance is in our wheelhouse. Our expert team can run Compliance Monitoring and Quality Control for your Public Housing Agency.

Call 888-466-5572 EXT. 2797