Fair housing laws encourage fairness, prevent discrimination in housing, and guarantee that everybody has the benefit of a secure and pleasant dwelling. However, comprehending and following these guidelines can be complicated for rental property managers and owners. Even though the idea behind fair housing rules is clear, putting them into action can be more complicated.
Understanding fair housing laws and how they apply to you is significant to keeping your rental properties compliant. Continue reading to learn about the basics of fair housing laws, common compliance difficulties, and advisable procedures for rental property owners and managers.
Understanding Fair Housing Laws
The initial step to understanding fair housing laws is to recognize that, contingent upon where your rental property is located, many federal, state, and municipal laws might be applicable.
The federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 is the first regulation that comes to mind when contemplating fair housing. This legislation prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, national origin, religion, gender, disability, and status in the family at a national level. The law encompasses housing sales, rentals, and financing, aiming to guarantee equal access in all housing-related transactions.
This law is enforced by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which evaluates complaints and strives to uphold fair housing standards across the U.S. On top of to the Fair Housing Act, other federal housing laws promote and support the fair housing principles. These strategies work together toward a more equitable housing landscape across the country.
In addition to federal regulations, numerous state and local laws deliver extra safeties for renters, handling problems such as eviction rights, security deposit limits, and discrimination due to income source, sexuality, or gender identification. Some cities have rent control or stabilization regulations to prevent excessive rent increases, conserving housing affordability in high-demand areas. Local tenant rights might also include protections against eviction during unpleasant weather, utilization of habitability standards, and the necessity for transparent communication between landlords and tenants. You can find further information about housing laws in your state online.
Common Compliance Challenges for Property Owners
Understanding the regulations is a great beginning, but it’s also important to know common scenarios that may result in housing law violations and how to avoid them. For instance, some common challenges rental property owners and landlords face in dealing with fair housing laws are usually the consequence of implicit bias or dependence on old-fashioned procedures.
In particular, some property managers and owners may struggle with tenant screening as federal law restricts you from refusing to rent to someone due to their disability status, age, or family status. Consequently, choosing beforehand that you will only rent to adults without children, for illustration, or that you won’t rent to people in their 20s, would both be examples of housing discrimination.
A comparable issue might develop when marketing the property, where property owners and managers may wish to target ads for a specific kind of tenant. These methods also regularly violate state and federal housing laws. Determining these hurdles and adjusting your screening and marketing methods will help you ensure fair and equitable treatment of all prospective residents.
Best Practices for Ensuring Compliance
There are critical actions to take to guarantee that your property management strategies meet with fair housing laws, such as developing and sticking to a standardized application process and creating guidelines for tenant screenings, which is the most efficient approach to minimize unintentional discrimination. Other best practices to ensure compliance include:
- Utilize inclusive language in rental advertisements to avoid prejudiced statements or preferences.
- Be consistent with distributing the same data, following the same procedures, and carrying out the same follow-up actions for each applicant.
- Guarantee that your lease terms, rules, and measures are equally fair to all tenants.
- Stay up-to-date about reasonable accommodations for tenants with disabilities and respond to such requests promptly and appropriately.
- Keep detailed records of all applications, communications, and decisions, incorporating your explanations for approvals and denials in case of future disputes or inquiries.
- Talk to an attorney or legal expert when creating policies or dealing with complicated issues.
For the sake of consistency, create and follow a written non-discrimination policy that voices your commitment to Fair Housing compliance.
Property Management Companies in Fair Housing Compliance
Experienced property managers should be aware of every relevant regulation at the local, state, and federal levels. Moreover, as trained professionals, they have procedures to ensure that your tenant connections, screening, papers, and other tasks comply with these regulations. This can give you serenity and help reduce the risk of discrimination claims altogether.
Building a Fair Housing Culture
With so much potential danger in an investment property, you need to be aware of the laws governing rental properties, housing, and other relevant issues to prevent legal hazards. Property owners can help ensure equitable treatment for all tenants by understanding and sticking with fair housing laws.
Working with an experienced property management company like Real Property Management Advantage allows you to manage the difficulty of fair housing legislation in Warren along with adjacent areas. Contact us today or call 248-554-1010 for additional information on assuring housing law obedience and other quality management services.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
