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Fair Housing & Housing Discrimination

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WHAT IS FAIR HOUSING?

Fair housing is the right to live where you choose, free from discrimination. Fair housing is not about giving certain people special rights, it’s about making sure everyone has equal rights and equal access to housing.

HOUSING DISCRIMINATION

Housing discrimination happens when someone is treated differently when renting or buying a home, getting a mortgage or home insurance, applying for housing assistance, or during any other housing-related activities.  Housing discrimination can take many forms including:

  • Refusal to rent or sell a property
  • False representation of home availability
  • Additional application requirements that disqualify or target a specific group of people
  • Unfair financing or loan qualifications
  • Restricting an individual’s choice of housing
  • Harassment of tenants by landlords
  • Different treatment for different tenants
  • Restricting access to services or facilities for a specific group people
  • Neglecting to fix maintenance issues for specific tenants

The federal Fair Housing Act protects people from housing discrimination.

WHAT IS THE FAIR HOUSING ACT?

The Fair Housing Act became a federal law on April 11, 1968. The Act bans discrimination in the buying, renting, or financing of housing because of a person’s:

  • Race;
  • Skin color;
  • National origin;
  • Religion;
  • Sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation;
  • Familial status (having legal custody of a child under the age of 18, being pregnant with a child, or in the process of adopting a child); or
  • Disability.

Virginia law also bans housing discrimination based on:

  • Military status (including veterans, and family members of veterans or active service members);
  • Being aged 55 years or older; and
  • Source of funds (including social benefit payments, and rental assistance payments).

To learn more about the history of the Fair Housing Act, and housing discrimination check out the following resources:

HOW TO REPORT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION

If you think you are the victim of housing discrimination, you may file a report with any of the organizations listed below. It is important to report housing discrimination as soon as possible because there are time limits on when a report can be filed. Please remember that it is illegal for anyone to retaliate against you for reporting housing discrimination.

Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia (HOME)

  • HOME has been helping individuals and families with housing discrimination since 1971.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity

  • Provides options to file a report online, or through the mail. Reporting forms are available in multiple languages.