LECTURE NOTES

Flashcards on Fair Housing and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

American with Disability Act (ADA)

Requires reasonable accommodations in employment and access to goods, services, and public buildings; affects the real estate industry as professionals are employers and their offices are public spaces.

ADA's Goal

Enables individuals with disabilities to become part of the economic and social mainstream.

Title One of ADA

Requires employers to make reasonable accommodations that enable an individual with a disability to perform essential job functions; applies to employers with 15 or more employees.

Reasonable Accommodations (ADA)

Making the workplace accessible, restructuring the job, providing part time or flexible work schedules, and modifying equipment.

Title Three of ADA

Requires individuals with disabilities have full accessibility to businesses, goods, and public services.

ADA Accessibility Guidelines

Designing parking spaces, curved ramps, elevators, drinking fountains, toilet facilities, and directional signs.

ADA Exemptions

Exempt from ADA requirements property covered by the Fair Housing Act and properties for those age 55 or older.

Rental Office in Apartment Complex

Covered by ADA and must be accessible to people with disabilities at the building owner's expense.

Individual Rental Units

Covered by the Fair Housing Act, tenant responsible for costs.

Wells vs. State Manufactured Home

A 2005 court case where the court held that the tenant did not meet the definition of disability under ADA because she failed to establish that her mental impairment substantially limited a major life activity.

Federal Protected Categories (Fair Housing)

Race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability.

Maryland's Additional Protected Categories

Marital status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Owner Occupant

Discriminates on marital status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Maryland Commission on Civil Rights

Responsible for fair housing violations in Maryland; nine members appointed by the governor for six year terms.

Complaints to the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights

Complaint to the commission must be made within one year of the alleged discriminatory action, in writing, and under oath.

Conciliation Agreement

A dispute resolution in which a conciliator meets with each party separately to help them settle their differences voluntarily, avoiding any hearing or trial.

HUD (Housing and Urban Development)

Administers federal Fair Housing Act, refers Maryland cases to the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights.

Maryland and Federal Fair Housing Laws

Maryland's laws and enforcement are substantially equivalent to the Federal Fair Housing Act; residential discrimination complaints are handled by state agencies and state courts.

Timeframe for Complaints

Complaint of the commission on civil rights must be made within one year; complainant may apply to a court for relief up to two years from the alleged discriminatory event.

Race Discrimination

The agreed person may go directly to a federal district court for injunctive relief.

Court

May award preventative relief, temporary or permanent injunctions, and restraining orders against those responsible for the violations; may also award monetary damages to the agreed person.

Recent Changes to Maryland Laws (Fair Housing)

Removing any discriminatory verbiage from all HOA and community covenants.

Maryland Legislation

Established a task force that evaluated the need for providing confidentiality to victims of domestic violence.

Maryland Secretary of State

Oversees the address confidentiality program to protect victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.

Advertising and Protected Classes

Under the protected classes, advertisements should focus on the property advertised, not on the potential tenants or buyers.

Advertising Activities vs Individuals

Focus on prohibiting activities and behavior rather than the individuals, (e.g., no smoking allowed rather than no smokers).

Real Estate Professionals and Fair Housing

Apply the laws routinely and avoid violating the laws and ethical standards.

Blockbusting

Encouraging people to sell or rent their homes by claiming that the entry of a protected class of people into the neighborhood will have a negative impact on property values.

Critical Element in Blockbusting (HUD)

The profit motive.

Panic Selling

Another term for blockbusting; property owner is intimidated into selling at a depressed price to a blockbuster who then sells at a higher price.

Solicitation of Residential Listing

One of the purposes of the solicitation is to change the racial compensation of a neighborhood.

Forms of Illegal Solicitation (Maryland)

Solicitation in person (door to door), by telephone, or by mass distribution of circulars is illegal.

Baltimore County Law

Law forbids canvassing by any person to generate listings or confer with owners about real estate.

Canvassing NOT Considered Solicitation

Advertisement in bonafide newspapers of general circulation, TV, radio; literature distributed through mail, legitimate personal referrals; contacts resulting from owner advertising property, and solicitation for appraisal information.

Conservation Area

Identifying and designating certain localities as conservation areas; advertising of property for sale and the use of for sale signs is suspended to preserve racial stability in event of threatening volume of real estate transactions.

Steering

The act of channeling home seekers to particular neighborhoods or discouraging potential buyers from considering some areas.

Steering Prohibited

I don't know what that is. I don't know such a thing.

School Zones

Board of Education.

Advertising

You're gonna be doing a lot of advertising.

No Preference or Limitation

Advertising of a property for sale or rent may not include language indicating a preference or limitation.

Gender Specific Advertisements

An advertisement that is gender specific is allowed as long as the advertiser seeks to share living quarters with someone of the same gender

Master bedroom changed to

Primary bedroom

Primary Bedroom

Is generally acceptable, but exclusive neighborhood or English speaking only is not.

Chapel on Premises

Is generally acceptable, but no Muslims or nice Christian family is not.

Accessory Unit

Is generally acceptable, but great pachelorette pad or wife's dream kitchen is not.

Wheelchair Ramp

Is generally acceptable, but no wheelchairs or able-bodied tenants only is not.

Two Bedroom

Is generally acceptable, but married couple only, no more than two children, or empty nesters is not.

Redlining

The practice of refusing to make mortgage loans or issue insurance policies in specific areas for reasons other than the economic qualifications the applicants.

Redlining's Origins

Began in the 1930s when the newly created Federal Housing Administration indicated on maps where the agency would not insure loans by highlighting certain areas in red ink.

Loan Refusal

A lending institution can refuse a loan application, but they must do it solely on economic grounds.

Economic Grounds

Lending institution can refuse a loan application, by they have to do it on sound economic grounds.

NOT what you look like

What do you look like?

Unintentional Discrimination

Examine their activities and policies to determine whether they have any unintentional discriminatory effects.

People see you in real estate

They're calculated, oh, she sold a million dollar house. She must have all this money. I see her driving that Mercedes Benz.

When your tired

Is stop, take a break, because that's when you start making mistakes.

Implicit Bias

Refers to stereotypes that are formed and influence a person's decision but not part of their conscious thought; a person is not aware of their implicit bias.

Evaluate Communication

Fairness, professionalism, and without bias should be employed when communicating with potential customers.

Discrimination solely on a person's citizenship status

Is not specifically prohibited under the Fair Housing Act.

Citizenship Papers

Applicants who apply for federally assisted housing.

HUD

Is a friend.

Office of the Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity

Administers the federal Fair Housing Act.

Upon receiving a

Complaint, HUD will initiate its own investigation.

Conciliation

The resolution of a complaint by obtaining assurance that the person against who the complaint was filed will remedy any violation that has occurred.

Enforced Through Civil Actions

These agreements should be enforced through Civil Actions if needed.

Administrative Proceeding

A hearing held before an administrative law judge.

Administrative judge

Is that they will pay you for what they did.

The administrative law judge has the authority to award

Actual damages to the aggrieved party.

To

And if a belief that the public interest will be served, pose a monetary penalty.

Parties

May elect civil action in federal court at any time within two years of the discriminatory act.

Federal Court

For cases held in federal court, unlimited punitive damages can be awarded in addition to the actual damages.

Engaged in a pattern or practice

Civil penalties may result in addition to the victims' actual damages, attorney fees, costs, as well as compensation for humiliation, mental distress.

Civil Rights Act of 1866

Complaint brought against the Civil Rights Act of 1866 are taken directly to federal courts, and the only time limit for action is the state statute of limitation.

The statute of limitations in Maryland

Is three years.

Local enforcement agencies

Again, is referred to, the federal Fair Housing Act was administered by HUD, which refers Maryland Cases to the Maryland Commission on Civil rights.

What that implies

All complaints are gonna be held locally.

What law protects

The Fair Housing Act protects the rights of those who seek the benefits of fair housing laws.

Real estate market

The real estate industry is largely responsible for creating and maintaining an open housing market.

You have

But there are social and legal responsibility to ensure that everyone's civil rights is protected

That it is a law

Fair housing is a law, period.

In regards to

That the offense was unintentional is no defense.

Well, Real estate professional can do

Scrutinize their practices and be particularly careful not to fall victim to clients or customers who expect them to discriminate.

Senior Housing

Will typically allow occupancy by younger visitors by permitting overnight visits for periods of time.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Has accessibility guidelines and contains detailed specifications for design.

Tenant Modification

If a tenant wishes to modify a unit the tenant would be responsible for the costs.

Owner-occupant discriminate on

Three Maryland state laws, marital Status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Civil rights commission

Nine members appointed by the governor for six year terms comprise the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights.

Complaints to the Commission

Must be made within one year of the alleged discriminatory action.

Commission member

Violates confidentiality can be punished by a fine of no more than a thousand dollars.

Maryland Laws

Recent changes to the Maryland laws including the requirement of removing any discriminatory verbiage from all HOA and community covenants.

Advertising Guidelines

Focus on the property advertised and not on the potential tenants or buyers.

Blockbusting definition

The act of encouraging people to sell or rent their homes by claiming that the entry of a protected class of individuals into the neighborhood.

Solicitation on listings

Use when one of the purposes of the solicitation or attempted solicitation is to change the Racial composition of the neighborhood.

Steering definition

Channeling of home seekers to particular neighborhoods or discouraging potentially buyers from considering some areas.

Administrative Proceeding Definition

An administrative proceeding is a hearing held before an administrative law judge.

Extra Maryland Laws

Maryland has three that the federal doesn't, Marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity.

Smoking rule

They're better off saying, no smoking and not no smoker.

Redlining effects

Redlining began in the nineteen thirties and led to the deterioration of older neighborhoods.

Unconscious bias definition

A person is not aware of their implicit bias and what has formed these biases.

Americans With Disabilities act

Requires that employers make accommodations for workers with disabilities.

Reporting of Home

The seller of the home did not report their house to HUD and that's okay because only sellers who assist federally, have to do that.