BUSINESS BASICS

12steps to stay on the right side of the Fair Housing Act

BY ELYSE UMLAUF-GARNEAU

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says it will conduct a national survey this year to measure the level of housing discrimination that exists in the marketplace. This increased scrutiny reinforces the importance of keeping your sales and leasing practices bias free. If you’re found to be in violation of the U.S. Fair Housing Act, you face fines and, in some cases, loss of your license. So with Fair Housing Month upon us, REALTOR® Magazine offers these basics on adhering to the law.

1. Commit the letter of the law to memory. The Fair Housing Act makes illegal any discrimination in the sale, lease, or rental of housing because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.

2.Give sellers and landlords the brochure What Everyone Should Know About Equal Opportunity in Housing and discuss it with them. (See “Fair housing resources”)

3.Point out and discuss any language in the listing or lease agreement that pertains to fair housing.

4.Get sellers’ consent in writing to abide by the law.

5.Walk away from a listing or a property management contract if the owners seem unwilling or unable to adhere to the Fair Housing Act. If sellers, for example, refuse to show their property to certain buyers, terminate the listing agreement.

6.Treat prospective buyers and tenants in a consistent manner. You can do so by establishing an equal professional servicemodel. That is, develop a consistent approach to greeting people, showing homes, qualifying prospects, obtaining listings, conducting open houses, keeping records, and following up with prospects. Ask standard questions, and consider using forms or checklists to keep track of what you need to cover with each prospect.

7.Be vocal about your support for fair housing. You want to send a positive message to your community and demonstrate that you and your company embrace fair housing. Conduct fair housing training programs, monitor salespeople’s and leasing agents’ performance, and commit to the REALTOR® Fair Housing Declaration. Doing so gives you a marketing edge and makes you more credible if you’re charged with a violation.

8.Market to diversity. NAR and HUD now certify real estate practitioners who’ve been trained to work effectively with a diverse population. The “At Home With Diversity: One America” certification program is a full-day class that helps you build cross-cultural skills and develop a business plan that capitalizes on diversity. Once you complete the course, you can display in your advertising the HUD One America logo.

9.Don’t encourage prospects to buy or lease a property--or discourage them from buying or leasing one--because of the racial, ethnic, or religious composition of a neighborhood. When you make such choices for prospects, you can be accused of steering. Instead, offer a variety of choices of neighborhoods.

10.Implement procedures, such as self-testing, to measure your company’s compliance with the fair housing law. Such procedures can help you discover areas for improvement. Private fair housing organizations or your local REALTOR® association can conduct the testing.

11.Beware of exclusivity. Be careful not to develop a promotion plan that excludes a certain group. Any marketing plan, including the selection of media for ads, that indicates a preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin is a violation of the Fair Housing Act.

12.Monitor yourself. Regularly ask yourself whether you provide the same level of service to everyone who walks through your door.

Fairhousing resources

Show the world that REALTORS® are leading the way to fair housing by making sure that your clients and customers--as well as your salespeople and leasing agents--know your commitment. NAR has developed several products that’ll help.

• What Everyone Should Know About Equal Opportunity inHousing--This three-panel brochure outlines the responsibilities of each party to a transaction. Available in Spanish and English. $19.95 per 100. Item #166-799-RM
• Fair Housing Sales: Shared Neighborhoods, EqualOpportunities Training Kit--This update on NAR’s award-winning fair housing training kit covers the legal, financial, and ethical considerations of fair housing. It includes a video, overheads, exams, a facilitator’s guide, a master participants’ guide, and a CD-ROM with a PowerPoint presentation. It’s designed for three hours of continuing education credit. $199.95, members; $299.95, nonmembers. Item #166-99-RM
• Fair Housing Rental: Shared Neighborhoods, Equal Opportunities Training Kit--This update of NAR’s award-winning training kit for property managers addresses landlord and tenant relationships, penalties for violations, and sensitive issues in property management. It’s designed for three hours of continuing education credit. $199.95, members; $299.95, nonmembers. Item #166-150-RM

To order, visit One Realtor Place® at REALTOR.COM or call Information Central, 800/874-6500. For more about fair housing,
see “Special Series: Fair Housing” in the April, May, and June 1998 issues of Today’s REALTOR®.

ONLINE
Quiz yourself . . . Now it’s time to apply your fair housing know-how to real life. Visit REALTOR® Magazine Online— part of One Realtor Place® atREALTOR.COM—for an interactive quiz and more information on fair housing.

Will your clever ad pass fair housing muster?
Ideal as a house may be for an empty nester, saying so in your ads could plunge you into legal hot water. Watchdog organizations could, and frequently do, claim that such ads discriminate against families with children.

The U.S. Fair Housing Act (which refers to Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and its 1988 amendments) makes it illegal to imply a bias against a certain type of buyer in a broad range of categories. It prohibits the making, printing, and publishing of advertisements that state a preference, limitation, or discrimination on the basis of

• Race, color, or national origin—Referring to the ethnicity of a home or neighborhood (“white” or “Irish,” for example) is an absolute no-no. But according to a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development policy statement released on Jan. 9, 1995, ads may contain such previously questioned phrases as “master bedroom” and “desirable neighborhood.”
  
• Sex, age, or marital status--Although the act provides an exception for seniors-only housing that meets certain requirements, using terms like adults only and singles preferred may land you before a judge. However, because of their usage as architectural descriptors, “mother-in-law suite,” “bachelor apartment,” and similar phrases are commonly accepted by the courts.
  
• Familial status--Can you say a property is “ideal for couples without children”? Nope. Stick with ads that describe features and neighborhoods rather than people.
  
• Religion--Avoid such phrases as “near Lutheran church,” which might imply a religious preference. Instead, try something like “near various houses of worship,” or avoid the religious angle.
  
• Handicap--Housing councils have generally conceded that such phrases as “walk-in closet” and “great views” don’t discriminate. Nor do ads that describe accessibility features (“wheelchair ramp”).
  
  One practitioner was sued for running an ad on Easter illustrated with a bunny and eggs; the complainant claimed the ad violated her beliefs by showing a Christian preference. A judge disagreed, but it goes to show that all your advertising deserves scrutiny. Take care, and when in doubt, check with an attorney.--Robert Liparulo