Reporting Acts of Discrimination

Note: This information remains current as of September 2007

Advice on Reporting Acts of Discrimination

When working in the housing market, you may encounter situations which appear to be discriminatory in violation of fair housing laws. In order to protect the prospective home seeker's rights to equal opportunity in housing, and to keep yourself from participating in those discriminatory acts, you need to take the following steps:

If the party discriminating is your client or is not a client of any other REALTOR^®: Talk to the party who appears to be violating the law and explain fair housing laws to that person. Ask that person to act in a non-discriminatory fashion. This often resolves the matter and results in the homeseeker obtaining access to housing as guaranteed by fair housing laws. Follow up with a letter summarizing your discussion.

If the party discriminating is a client of another REALTOR^®: Talk to the other REALTOR^® and explain your concerns. Ask the other REALTOR^® to speak with the client and end the discriminatory behavior. Follow up with a letter summarizing your discussion.

If the discrimination is not ended or corrected and the party discriminating is your client: End your relationship with that client, i.e. terminate the listing. Inform the homeseeker regarding what has occurred and your belief that discrimination was involved. Provide the homeseeker with information on where to file a complaint. Follow up with a letter to the client and to the homeseeker summarizing your discussions and actions taken.

If the discrimination is not ended and the party is not your client: Inform the homeseeker regarding what has occurred and your belief that discrimination was involved. Provide the homeseeker with information on where to file a complaint. Follow up with a letter to the homeseeker summarizing your discussion.

If the discrimination is not ended and the party is another REALTOR^®: In addition to the above, you may file an ethics complaint with the Board alleging violation of Article 10 of the Code of Ethics.

Agencies to Which Acts of Discrimination May Be Reported

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
State and Local Government Human Rights or Civil Rights Agencies / Private Fair Housing Groups

Protect your own fair housing rights

You also may have a cause of action against the discriminating party and file a complaint on you own behalf.

Please Note: You may report any incident of discrimination to an appropriate agency without filing a complaint.