The New Basics of Fair Housing

FAIR HOUSING ROAD MAP OF THE RENTAL PROCESS
Introduction
● History of FHA
● Protected categories
● Explanation of each protected category
● Map of state and local protected categories and unique provisions
● Introduction of Fair Housing Road Map
● Introduction to Murphy Hill Townhouses and Dodge Falls Lofts
Marketing
● Description of marketing activities
● Example with use of words in an advertisement
● Problematic words phrases
● Website accessibility
● Marketing-related topics
● HUD and RD’s fair housing poster
● Use of fair housing logo
Meeting, greeting, and taking prospects on tours
● Testers
● What kind of people live here
● Consistency in treatment
Showing and offering housing
● Steering
● Order of showing or assigning vacant units
● Documenting preferences of prospects
● Examples of making an availability error
● Application
● Screening criteria
● Use of third-party screening companies
● Criminal history screening issues
Terms of the lease
● Consistency in lease terms
● Negotiating rental amounts
Provision of services and amenities
● Golden Rules of customer service
●Fair housing maintenance issues
● Sexual harassment
● Rules pertaining to use of amenities
Property rules and policies
● Example of consistent application of rules
● Need to make possible exceptions
Lease violations and terminations
● Consistent enforcement
● New for thorough documentation
● Retaliation renewal
●Potential for appearance of discrimination
● Need for applying a consistent renewal policy that can be documented
Review of Fair Housing Road Map of the rental process

FAMILIAL STATUS AND DISABILITY
Familial status issues
● Rules pertaining to children
● Curfews
● Occupancy rules
● Considerations beyond “two persons per bedroom”
● Pregnant women
● Housing for older persons
Disability rights
● Discrimination
○ Definitions
○ Limitations
● Reasonable accommodations
○ Processing requests
○ Verification
○ Challenges to housing providers due to limitations to reasonable accommodation process
○ Steps in process
○ Hearing and clarifying a request
○ Avoid discouraging or instantly denying a request
○ Timely process requests
○ Forms
○ Who can be a verifier?
○ Examples of requests
○ Assistance animals
○ Assigned parking
○ Transfers
○ Use of chemicals
○ Reasonable modifications
○ Requirements
○ Who pays?
○ Unreasonable requests
● Accessibility
○ Fair Housing Act
○ UFAS
○ ADAAG
○ State building codes
Review of familial status and disability

FINAL EXAM

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owner.