Housing Discrimination Investigation

Know Your Fair Housing Rights

Fair housing means you may freely choose a place to live without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or family status. Fair housing is a right protected by federal, state and local laws. Housing discrimination is against the law.

Recognizing Housing Discrimination

Housing discrimination is seldom obvious. It can be cleverly disguised with a handshake and a smile. Your rights are violated when, because of your race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or family status (because you have children in your family), you are not allowed to:

• View or rent an apartment
• View or purchase a home
• Apply for or secure a home loan
• Purchase homeowners or renters insurance

Though some of the following statements may seem reasonable, they could, in fact, be attempts to keep you from renting the apartment or buying the home of your choice.

Be SUSPICIOUS when you hear lines like these:

When renting ...

• "We just rented the last apartment."
• "I'll need to see your green card before I can show you the apartment."
• "This building is for adults only."
• "We can't take care of disabled or handicapped people here."

When buying ...

• "The homes are too expensive in that neighborhood."
• "We can't seem to make an appointment to show you that house."
• "I'll need more detailed financial information before I can show you homes."
• "The owner just took the house off of the market."

When financing ...

• "I"ll refer you to an FHA lender for prequalifying."
• "We'd like to make this loan, but we need at least a 20% downpayment."
• "You haven't been at your job long enough to qualify for a mortgage loan."
• "There seems to be a problem with the appraisal."

What You Should Do

If you feel that you are being treated unfairly, take the following steps:

• Keep a record of any meetings and phone calls with landlords, property managers, real estate agents, loan officers and insurance agents.
• Write down what happened and what was said. Save all receipts, applications, business cards and other documents received during your meetings.

Contact HOPE Fair Housing Center via  Contact Us
or call:  630-690-6500
Toll Free:  877-HOPE-FHC