Julia Lashay Israel of Keller Williams provides a glossary to help you navigate the complexities of fair housing regulations and provide fair and equal service to all clients.
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It is critical for new real estate agents to become familiar with fair housing provisions to ensure they comply with legal requirements and provide equal service to all clients. Here are some key terms they should learn:
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1. Fair Housing Act (FHA): the primary federal laws governing fair housing practices, The law prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status or national origin in the sale, rental and financing of housing.
2. Discrimination: Real estate discrimination is the unfair treatment of an individual or group in housing-related activities based on characteristics protected by law. Examples of discrimination in real estate may be:
- Landlord refuses to rent apartment to family with children
- Like renting to adults only
- Property managers require tenants of certain races to pay higher security deposits
- One property ad said the property was “suitable for young professionals” and discouraged families with children from applying.
3. Protection category: These groups are protected by fair housing laws and include race, color, religion, sex (including gender and sexual orientation), disability, familial status and national origin. Discrimination against these classes is illegal.
4. Reasonable accommodation: A reasonable accommodation is a change, exception, or adjustment in rules, policies, practices, or services that gives individuals with disabilities an equal opportunity to use and enjoy housing. This requirement is intended to ensure that persons with disabilities are not discriminated against and have full access to and enjoyment of housing. Examples of reasonable accommodations include:
- Allow tenants to have service animals
- Provide designated accessible parking spaces near building entrances
- Modify leasing requirements, such as allowing for live-in aides for tenants with disabilities.
5. Reasonable modification: Reasonable modifications are structural changes to a dwelling or common areas to enable a person with a disability to fully enjoy the property. Unlike reasonable accommodations, which are changes in rules, policies, or services, reasonable modifications involve physical changes to the property.
These modifications are usually paid for by the tenant. Examples of reasonable modifications include:
- Install ramps to provide wheelchair access to building entrances
- Add grab bars to your bathroom to help with stability and mobility
- Adjust doorways to accommodate wheelchair access.
6. Red line: Redlining is a discriminatory practice in real estate and lending in which services such as mortgages, insurance, or loans are inaccessible or made more expensive for residents of certain areas based on their racial or ethnic makeup. The term “redlining” comes from the practice of using red ink to mark areas on maps, often minority neighborhoods, where financial institutions would avoid investing.
7. Turn: Steering is the unethical and illegal practice in which real estate agents or brokers steer potential homebuyers or renters into or away from certain neighborhoods based on race, ethnicity, religion, or other protected characteristics. This practice reinforces residential segregation and violates the Fair Housing Act. Examples of diversions may include:
- Show customers homes in certain neighborhoods only based on their race or ethnicity
- Advising a client not to view homes in a particular neighborhood based on the agent’s opinion of where the client should live
- Provide different levels of service or information to customers based on their background. For example, providing customers of certain races with more detailed information about school quality and amenities or commenting on the racial, ethnic, or religious composition of the community in order to influence the customer’s decision.
8. HUD (Department of Housing and Urban Development): The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is a federal agency responsible for developing national policies and programs that address America’s housing needs, improve and develop the nation’s communities, and enforce fair housing laws. HUD’s involvement in fair housing is core to its mission to ensure equal housing opportunity for all Americans.
Learning and understanding these terms will help new agents navigate the complexities of fair housing regulations and provide fair and equal service to all clients.
As Director of Inclusion and Belonging at Keller Williams Realty International, Julia Lashay Israel advises, trains and coaches leaders, team members and agents to recognize and address diversity, equity and inclusion opportunities and opportunities throughout the organization. challenge.
