It's Fair Housing Month... Do You Know Who's Protected Against Familial Status Discrimination?

A relative latecomer to federal housing discrimination law, "familial status" is a protected class that refers to the presence of at least one child under 18 years old. The goal of including "familial status" in the Fair Housing Act is to give tenants the right not to be turned away from housing or be treated differently just because they have kids.

Familial status sounds straightforward, but there's a bit more to it than meets the eye.

For example...

• Are families with adopted children protected just as much as those with biological children?
• Do parents in a household have to be married?
• Can the owner of a senior housing community legally turn away families with children?
• Are all rules that single out children automatically in violation of federal law?

Find out the answers to these questions and more in my recent Nolo.com article, entitled "Who's Protected Against Familial Status Discrimination?"

Retirement Community Accused of Penalizing Renters for Needing Motorized Wheelchairs

A Virginia retirement community has been hit with a fair housing complaint for allegedly violating the Fair Housing Act's (FHA) ban on discrimination based on disability.

According to a press release issued Wednesday by Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia, Inc. (HOME), the organization filing the complaint, The Towers Retirement Community in Richmond unfairly and illegally places substantial burdens on renters who need to use a motorized wheelchair in connection with a disability.

Specifically, HOME claims that the community requires renters to commit to an additional $1,500 security deposit as well as obtain liability insurance for motorized wheelchairs, essentially making such renters pay for having a disability. Also, renters who use motorized mobility devices are apparently barred from using the community's transportation services—even though they're reportedly required to pay a monthly transportation fee as part of their monthly rent. In addition, HOME alleges that the community requires renters wishing to use a motorized wheelchair to get their disability assessed by the community's staff.

You can access a copy of the HOME press release (issued February 5, 2014) here.

Fair Housing Help: Children in Senior Housing

If you're looking for an apartment in a senior community, you might prefer not to have children as your neighbors. On the other hand, you may want a senior community that allows children, particularly if you're the legal guardians of children.

Fair housing law lets children live in senior housing, but only under certain circumstances. Find out what they are by reviewing this summary I put together of what you should expect when you start a senior housing search.

Fair Housing Help: Who Qualifies for Senior Housing?

Many seniors prefer to rent an apartment in a community with other seniors. If you're one of them, you might wonder exactly what "senior housing" means and what age you must be to qualify for such a community.

To help you, I put together a summary of the Fair Housing Act's (FHA) senior housing's requirements so you can know what to expect before you begin an apartment search. Landlords who wish to limit occupancy of certain apartments to seniors should also be familiar with these requirements to avoid fair housing violations. 

Cooperative Pays Price for Running Unqualified Senior Housing

The owners and board of directors of a 104-unit Wilmette, Illinois cooperative apparently knew that the Fair Housing Act exempts senior housing properties from the ban against familial status discrimination. But what they didn't seem to know is that your property has to qualify as senior housing before you can safely start discriminating against families with children.

The problem arose in 2006 when individual unit owners tried to sell their unit to a family that had two young children. The cooperative blocked the sale, pointing to a rule that the "community is not considered suitable for children under 18 years of age." A local HUD-funded fair housing enforcement agency promptly filed a fair housing complaint with HUD, arguing that the cooperative can't discriminate against families with children if it's not truly senior housing.

The legal dispute recently led to a settlement, announced January 14, 2009. Under the terms of the settlement, the cooperative will begin to operate the property as a "55 and older" senior community. But it must pay — $20,000 to the fair housing agency and $8,000 as a civil penalty — plus agree to fair housing training, monitoring, and extensive advertising showing continued compliance with the Fair Housing Act.

Assisted Living Facility Needs Assistance with Motorized Wheelchair Policy

The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a fair housing complaint against the owners and operators of a 58-unit Evansville, Indiana independent and assisted senior living facility, on behalf of two tenants who were evicted for their motorized wheelchair use. The complaint, filed November 7, 2008, alleges that the facility's policy of refusing to let tenants use motorized wheelchairs or scooters in their apartments or in the facility's dining room violates the Fair Housing Act's ban on disability discrimination.

In one alleged instance, when one of the evicted tenants arrived at the dining room on his motorized wheelchair, facility employees reminded him of the policy and then attempted to "forcibly remove" him from his wheelchair. The DOJ filing follows HUD's issuance of Charges of Discrimination against the facility on September 25.

Interesting to note:

You may be surprised to read that an assisted living facility is imposing this ban, since you might expect such a place to be particularly attuned to the needs of tenants with disabilities and more aware of disability discrimination laws. According to the complaint, the facility's own admission requirements state that applicants must be "ambulatory," which the administrator explained means "capable of moving from place to place... even if the person required some form of assistance in moving about, be it a cane, walker, or a[n] electric or nonelectric wheelchair or scooter." (Emphasis added.)