The purpose of the fair housing laws
is to protect a person's right to
own, sell, purchase, or rent housing
of his or her choice without fear of
unlawful discrimination. The fair
housing laws are intended to allow
everyone equal access to housing.
State and Federal fair housing laws
prohibit discrimination in the
housing market on the basis of race,
color, sex, religion, national
origin, handicap, or familial
status. To discriminate against a
person on the basis of his or her
membership in one of these protected
categories is against the law. This
information focuses primarily on the
fair housing laws as they are
applied in the State of North
Carolina.
Questions
General
Discrimintory Practices
Handicap
Familial Status
Real Estate Agents and Fair Housing
Enforcement of the Fair Housing Laws
Answers
Do the fair housing
laws apply to all housing
transactions?
Yes, except for the
following limited exemptions:
- The rental of a unit in a
multi-family dwelling with not
more than four units where the
owner (or a member of the
owner's family) lives in one of
the units
- The rental of a room or
rooms in a private house where
the owner (or a member of the
owner's family) lives in the
house
- Lodging owned or operated by
private clubs which give
preference to their members
Religious, charitable, or
educational institutions or
organizations which are
operated, supervised, or
controlled by religious
institutions or organizations
that give preference in real
estate transactions to their
members, provided the
organization does not exclude
members of a protected category
- Single-sex dormitories
What are some
common unlawful acts of
discrimination?
Refusing to sell,
rent or negotiate - It is against
the law to take any of the following
actions because a person is a member
of one of the protected categories:
- To refuse to engage in a
real estate transaction
- To refuse to rent or sell
housing
- To discriminate in terms,
conditions, or privileges for
the sale or rental of housing
- To refuse to receive or fail
to transmit a bona fide offer to
engage in a real estate
transaction
- To indicate that housing is
not available when it actually
is available
- To discriminate by providing
different facilities or services
- To refuse to negotiate for
housing
Steering - Discouraging a
person from seeking housing in a
particular community, neighborhood,
or development because the person is
or is not a member of a protected
category. For example, a real estate
agent shows a black person housing
in predominately black neighborhoods
and a white person housing in
predominately white neighborhoods.
Interference, coercion, or
intimidation - Trying to limit
the benefits of renting or buying
housing in an area because the
person is a member of one of the
protected categories. This includes
trying to coerce, threaten,
intimidate, retaliate against, or
interfere in any way with the use
and enjoyment of housing.
Discriminatory advertising
- Advertising or making any
statement which indicates directly
or indirectly an intent to make a
limitation, specification, or to
discriminate with respect to members
of one of the protected categories.
Blockbusting (also
referred to as panic peddling) -
Trying, in a direct or subtle way,
to scare a person into moving out of
a neighborhood by representing that
a person from one of the protected
categories is considering or is in
fact moving into the neighborhood.
For example, stating that the
neighborhood would decline or that
the crime rate would increase if
members of a protected category
moved into the neighborhood would be
unlawful.
Redlining - Being denied
or subjected to stricter conditions
in applying for a loan on property
in a particular area because of the
racial composition of the area,
including loans to purchase,
construct, improve, repair, or
maintain housing.
Can a person other
than the seller or landlord be
guilty of violating the fair housing
laws?
Yes. Anyone involved
in the real estate transaction who
discriminates based on a protected
category has violated the fair
housing laws. For example, a local
banker informs a real estate agent
that if the agent allows anyone else
with kids to move into the
neighborhood, the bank will not do
business with the agent or the
agent's customers.
Does an owner have
to rent or sell to a person just
because he or she is in a protected
category?
No. Owners may rent
or sell to whomever they choose as
long as their decisions are not
based on the fact that a would-be
tenant or buyer is a member of a
protected category. If someone from
a protected category becomes a
tenant, the owner may hold that
tenant to the same standard of
performance and behavior as everyone
else.
Can landlords
protect themselves from complaints
of discrimination when they reject
someone from a protected category?
Yes. A landlord
should have detailed standards for
deciding who is acceptable as a
tenant and who is not. However,
these standards may not be based
upon a prospective tenant's
membership in a protected category.
Such standards are particularly
important in decisions to reject a
tenant applicant because of poor
credit, and to place would-be
tenants on a "waiting list." The
landlord should then apply these
standards equally to every tenant
applicant. If a waiting list is
used, the landlord must make sure
that every applicant who is told
that his or her name will be placed
on the list is indeed put there and
that, as an applicant's name comes
up, the applicant is notified of
this fact.
What conditions are
considered handicaps under the fair
housing laws?
A handicapping
condition exists if someone has a
physical or mental impairment which
substantially limits one or more
major life activities. Some examples
are: physical disability, mental
illness or retardation, cerebral
palsy, muscular dystrophy, cancer,
heart disease, Human
Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
infection or AIDS, drug addiction
(other than addiction caused by
current, illegal use of a controlled
substance) and alcoholism. However,
a landlord does not have to rent to
anyone, including a handicapped
person, who would constitute a
genuine, direct threat to the health
or safety of other tenants or whose
tenancy would result in substantial
physical damage to the property of
others.
Does a landlord
have to allow a handicapped person
to make modifications to a rental
unit?
Yes. A landlord must
allow a handicapped person to make
reasonable modifications to the
existing premises as necessary for
the full enjoyment of the premises,
such as widening doorways,
installing handrails, and installing
wheelchair ramps. However, the
handicapped person is responsible
for the cost of the modifications. A
landlord may condition permission to
make modifications on the tenant's
agreeing to restore the interior of
the premises to the original
condition if the modifications made
by the handicapped tenant would
interfere with the next tenant's
reasonable use and enjoyment of the
property. The landlord may also
withhold permission until seeing a
description of the proposed
modifications which provides
reasonable assurance that the
modifications will be done in a
workmanlike manner. [Note: All
multifamily dwellings covered by the
fair housing laws and ready for
first occupancy after March 13,
1991, have to be designed and
constructed so that few, if any,
modifications will be necessary.]
Can a landlord
charge a higher security deposit to
a handicapped person who makes
modifications to a rental unit?
No. However, if the
nature of the modifications is such
as would interfere with the next
tenant's use and enjoyment of the
property, and correction of the
modifications would be especially
costly, the landlord may, as part of
a restoration agreement between the
landlord and tenant, require the
tenant to pay into an
interest-bearing escrow account a
reasonable amount to cover
restoration costs. The tenant would
be entitled to any interest which
accrues on the escrow account.
Does a landlord
have to make other accommodations
for a handicapped tenant?
Yes. A landlord must
make reasonable accommodations in
rules, policies, practices, or
services as necessary to afford a
handicapped person equal opportunity
to use and enjoy a housing unit,
including public and common use
areas; for example, allowing a
visually-impaired tenant to have an
aid dog in a community where no pets
are allowed, and allowing a tenant
with a serious heart condition to
have a reserved parking space close
to the tenant's apartment.
If a landlord has
available units which are equipped
for the handicapped, does a
handicapped person have to take one
of those units?
No. A landlord can
advise a handicapped person of the
availability of specially equipped
units, but the handicapped person
must be allowed to choose from any
of the units which are available.
Can persons with
children be denied housing on that
basis?
No. The fair housing
laws protect a person who (1) has a
child under the age of 18, (2) has
legal custody of a child, (3) is
designated by the parent to care for
a child (provided that the designee
has written permission from the
parent), (4) is pregnant, or (5) is
in the process of obtaining legal
custody of a child. However, the
fair housing laws do not protect
persons denied housing because they
are single, married, or living with
someone.
Are "adults only"
communities allowed?
No, unless they
qualify for one of the two
exemptions which allow for adults
only housing for housing elderly
persons. [Note: There are numerous
requirements which must be met to
qualify for these exemptions.
Contact the North Carolina Human
Relations Commission for further
details.] If a housing complex
qualifies for the elderly person
exemption, then it may discriminate
based on familial status only. It
may not discriminate on the basis of
any of the other protected
categories.
Can an owner or
agent segregate families with
children from other tenants?
No. A member of a
protected category may not be
assigned to a particular section of
a community, neighborhood or
development, or to a particular
floor of a building because of being
a member of a particular category.
Can a landlord or
agent limit the number of children
allowed in a bedroom, or prohibit
the sharing of bedrooms by children
of the opposite sex?
No. Although a
landlord may set "occupancy
standards' for the number of people
that will be allowed to live in a
unit, the standards should not be
based on the age or sex of the
individuals. [Note: The fair housing
laws do not limit the applicability
of any reasonable local, State, or
Federal restrictions regarding the
maximum number of persons permitted
to occupy a housing unit.]
May a real estate
agent discriminate at the direction
of the owner?
No. Even if a real
estate agent has no discriminatory
intent, the agent is in violation of
the fair housing laws when
discriminating against persons from
one of the protected categories at
the direction of the owner or
lessor. Likewise, an agent is in
violation if he or she knows that
members of protected categories may
be unlawfully rejected by the owner
or lessor.
What should a real
estate agent do if he or she finds
out that the seller or
landlordintends to discriminate
against a member of a protected
category?
The agent should
immediately terminate the agency
relationship with the seller or
landlord. The agent should then send
a letter to the seller or landlord
stating that the relationship has
been terminated and explaining why.
Next, the agent should inform any
other agents or other parties to the
transaction that he or she no longer
represents the seller or landlord.
Can a real estate
agentdecline to show property in a
particular area because members of a
protected category reside in that
area?
No. This is
steering, even if the buyer requests
it. The real estate agent should
inform the buyer that he or she can
show property based on any of the
buyer's other criteria, but not the
presence or absence in the area of
members of a protected category.
Is a real estate
brokerage firm in violation of the
fair housing laws if one of its
employees or agents unlawfully
discriminates?
Yes.
Can a real estate
agent answer questions about the
characteristics of a neighborhood if
the questions concern one of the
protected categories?
No.
Is it a violation
of the fair housing laws to deny an
agent who is a member of a protected
category access to real estate
related services?
Yes. It is a
violation of the fair housing laws
to deny a qualified real estate
agent access to or membership in any
membership listing service, real
estate brokers' organization or
other service, organization, or
facility relating to the business of
selling or renting housing, because
he or she is a member of one of the
protected categories.
Can a violation of
the fair housing law affect a real
estate broker's or salesman's
license?
Yes. A violation of
the fair housing laws is a violation
of the North Carolina Real Estate
License Law; therefore, it could
result in suspension or revocation
of the agent's license by the North
Carolina Real Estate Commission.
What should I do if
I suspect that I or someone else has
experienced unlawful discrimination
in a housing transaction?
You may file a
complaint or notify the North
Carolina Human Relations Commission
(NCHRC), 217 W. Jones St., Raleigh,
N.C. 27603-1336. (Phone:
919/733-7996). However, the
complaint must be filed within one
year after the alleged violation
occurred. The North Carolina Human
Relations Commission will be glad to
answer any questions you may have.
What happens after
I file a complaint?
The NCHRC will
investigate to determine whether
unlawful discrimination has
occurred. If it has, the NCHRC will
attempt to eliminate or correct the
discriminatory practice by informal
conference, persuasion, or
conciliation. If it is unable to
resolve the matter:
- you may request a
right-to-sue letter so that you
may file a civil lawsuit;
- the NCHRC may file a lawsuit
for you; or
- if neither of the two
previous options is taken, an
administrative hearing may take
place where a final decision on
the matter will be made.
If the NCHRC fails
to find that discrimination has
taken place, it will dismiss the
complaint and issue a right-to-sue
letter.
Of course, you have
the right to file a civil suit, at
your expense, at any time based on a
violation of the fair housing laws
without filing a complaint with the
NCHRC.
