The federal Fair Housing Act, Title VIII of the Civil Liberty Act of 1968, was meant to safeguard the buyer/renter of a house from seller/landlord discrimination. The law was the result of a civil rights project against housing discrimination in the United States. It was authorized, at the urging of President Lyndon B. Johnson, only one week after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
. The Act is enforced by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
HUD examines grievances of housing discrimination based upon race, color, faith, national origin, sex, disability, or familial status. At no charge to you, HUD will explore the problem and try to solve the matter with both celebrations. The process to file a grievance is covered below.
NOTE: If you want to discover more about your rights as a renter in Kansas, read this Kansas Tenant Handbook. It was initially published by the Kansas agency Housing and Credit Counseling, Inc. (HCCI), which helps individuals in Kansas with a range of consumer problems.
Here is a video to show how the Fair Housing Act secures you from discrimination on the basis of LGBTQ status.
This video talks about discrimination in Idaho, but it also applies to Kansas and other states as well. If you feel you have been a victim of housing discrimination due to the fact that of LGBTQ status, you can apply for help from KLS online or call the application line at 316-267-3975. Or you can learn how to submit a grievance directly with HUD by going here.
What Housing Is Covered?
The Fair Housing Act covers most housing Sometimes, the Act exempts owner-occupied structures without any more than four units, single-family housing sold or leased without a broker, and housing run by companies and personal clubs that limit tenancy to members.
What Is Prohibited?
In the Sale and Rental of Housing: Nobody might take any of the following actions based upon race, color, nationwide origin, religious beliefs, sex, familial status or handicap:
- Refuse to rent or sell housing
- Refuse to anticipate housing.
- Make housing not available
- Deny a home
- Set various terms, conditions or privileges for sale or leasing of a dwelling
- Provide different housing services or facilities
- Falsely deny that housing is open for evaluation, sale, or rental
- For revenue, encourage owners to sell or lease (blockbusting) or
- Deny anybody access to or membership in a center or service (such as a multiple listing service) associated to the sale or rental of housing.
In Mortgage Lending: Nobody might take any of the following actions based on race, color, national origin, religious beliefs, sex, familial status or handicap (disability):
- Refuse to make a mortgage loan - Refuse to give info about loans
- Impose different terms or conditions on a loan, such as various rates of interest, points, or costs
- Discriminate in evaluating residential or commercial property
- Refuse to buy a loan or
- Set different terms or conditions for buying a loan.
In Addition: It is prohibited for anybody to:
- Threaten, push, bully or disrupt anyone applying a reasonable housing right or assisting others who work out that right - Advertise or make any statement that shows a cap or preference based on race, color, nationwide origin, religious beliefs, sex, familial status, or handicap. This bar versus discriminatory marketing applies to single-family and owner-occupied housing that is otherwise exempt from the Fair Housing Act.
Additional Protection if You Have a Special needs
If you or somebody linked with you:
- Have a physical or mental disability (consisting of hearing, mobility and visual disabilities, persistent alcoholism, chronic psychological illness, AIDS, AIDS Related Complex and psychological retardation) that greatly limits several major life activities - Have a record of such a special needs or
- Are related to as having such an impairment
Your property manager may not:
- Refuse to let you make realistic changes to your house or typical use areas, at your cost, if needed for the handicapped individual to use the housing. (Where logical, the property owner may allow changes just if you concur to restore the residential or commercial property to its initial condition when you move.). - Refuse to make practical variations in guidelines, policies, practices or services if needed for the disabled person to utilize the housing.
Example: A building with a 'no family pets' policy must allow an aesthetically impaired occupant to keep a guide pet.
Example: Let's state an apartment building provides renters adequate, unassigned parking. They need to honor a bid from a mobility-impaired renter for a reserved space near her apartment if it is needed to assure that she can have access to her apartment.
However, housing need not be made vacant to a person who is a direct danger to the health or security of others or who now utilizes controlled substances.
Requirements for New Buildings
In structures that were prepared for very first usage after March 13, 1991, and have an elevator and four or more units:
- Public and common areas should come in handy to persons with disabilities. - Doors and corridors need to be wide enough for wheelchairs.
- All systems need to have: - An available route into and through the system.
- Handy light switches, electric outlets, thermostats and other ecological controls.
- Reinforced bathroom walls to permit later on fitting of grab bars and.
- Kitchens and restrooms that can be used by individuals in wheelchairs.
If a building with four or more systems has no elevator and were ready for first use after March 13, 1991, these requirements apply to ground flooring systems.
These must-haves for new buildings do not replace any more in State or regional law.
Housing Opportunities for Families
Unless a building or community qualifies as housing for older persons, it might not discriminate based upon familial status. That is, it might not victimize households in which several children under 18 cope with:
- A parent. - A person who has legal custody of the child or kids or.
- The designee of the moms and dad or legal custodian, with the moms and dad or custodian's written approval.
Familial status security also applies to pregnant ladies and anyone protecting legal custody of a kid under 18.
Exemption: Housing for older persons is exempt from the restriction against familial status discrimination if:
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- The HUD Secretary has decided that it is specially developed for and inhabited by elderly persons under a Federal, State or regional government program or. - It is inhabited solely by persons who are 62 or older or.
- It houses at least one individual who is 55 or older in a minimum of 80 percent of the occupied systems. It should likewise abide by a policy that demonstrates an intent to house individuals who are 55 or older.
A shift duration permits homeowners on or before September 13, 1988, to continue residing in the housing, despite their age, without hindering the exemption.
If you believe your rights have been broken ... The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a Kansas or local reasonable housing firm is prepared to assist you submit a grievance, or you can request legal assistance from KLS online or call the application line at 1-800-723-6953. Go online to HUD to discover how to file a grievance.
What to Tell HUD
- Your name and address. - The name and address of the individual your grievance is versus (the participant).
- The address or other description of the housing involved.
- A short description of the alleged offense (the occasion that caused you to think your rights were broken).
- The date of the alleged infraction
Where to Write or Call:
Send a letter to the reasonable housing office nearest you, or if you wish, you might call that workplace directly.
Great Plains Office-- Fair Housing Hub
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,
Gateway Tower II, 400 State Avenue, Room 200, fourth Floor,
Kansas City, KS 66101-2406
Telephone (913) 551-6958 or 1-800-743-5323
Fax (913) 551-6856
TTY (913) 551-6972
E-mail: Complaints_office_07@hud.gov!.?.! Have a look at our pages on Resolving legal
barriers to work and housing and Facts about record expungement in Kansas. Check out Tenant issues and rights for Kansas renters Plain text -No HTML tags allowed.- Lines and paragraphs break immediately.- Websites addresses and e-mail addresses develop into links instantly.