Having a place to live is one of the most basic necessities of life. A house provides shelter, a sense of well-being, and represents a financial investment. However, housing is also an issue that comes up for discrimination.
In 2010, 10, 155 housing discrimination complaints were filed with Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and its Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) partners, which are state and local governments agencies which investigate the complaints (PD&R Edge). It was the fifth straight year that there were more than 10,000 complaints (PD&R Edge). The highest amount of complaints was for disability at 48 percent, followed by race at 34 percent (PD&R Edge).
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In the example given, Juan and Maria Sanchez are being discriminated against on the basis of their race because their offer was rejected by the owners of the home because they didn’t want to sell to a Hispanic couple.
If they had their heart set on the home, they could always make a larger offer, and hope the owners’ greed overcomes their prejudice. But if they don’t want to spend the extra money, which most people wouldn’t blame them, they can file a Housing Discrimination Complaint online, which will be reviewed by a specialist. In the complaint, they can give their evidence of what they felt was discrimination against them. (U.S. Housing and Urban Development “Filing Your Housing Discrimination …”).
They can do this on the basis of Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, also known as the Fair Housing Act, prohibits discrimination when selling, renting or financing a home based upon race, gender, religion, national origin and a few other reasons.(U.S. Housing and Urban Development, “Fair Housing Laws …”).
The family and the home owners can pursue the case in court, or administratively (U.S. Housing and Urban Development, “Live Free”, pp 35). The court, or administrative law judge may award actual damages, and equitable relief to the family, plus impose civil penalties on the home owner (“Live Free” pp 35). The penalties are fines up to $16,000 for a first offense, $37,000 for a second offense within five years, and $65,000 for a third offense within seven years (“Live Free pp 35).
Housing discrimination is a serious matter, and should not be taken lightly. In the example, the Sanchezs had the right to be offended, and had their civil rights violated. The owners may end up paying dearly for their prejudice.
- PD&R Edge, The Status of Fair Housing, Retrieved from http://www.huduser.org/portal/pdredge/pdr_edge_research_040612.html
- Fair Housing Laws and Presidential Executive Orders, U.S. Housing and Urban Development, Retrieved from http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/FHLaws
- Filing Your Housing Discrmination Complaint Online, U.S. Housing and Urban Development
Retrieved from http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/topics/housing_discrimination - Live Free, U.S. Housing and Urban Development, Retrieved from http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=ANNUALREPORT2010.PDF
