This area will be of most interest to housing providers and local communities, or those entities that make the built environment, programs, services or activities available to a tenant, client or constituent. These stakeholders should also check out our information on Limited English Proficiency, or LEP.
For purposes of this site, ‘housing provider’ primarily refers to property owners and managers, or any individual or entity that rents, leases, sells, represents, manages, or offers any type of housing to a tenant. Housing providers may also be those who design, engineer, and/or build residential structures for occupancy. Housing providers must understand the responsibilities and limitations imposed on them by the Fair Housing Act and other federal laws.
The term ‘community’ is used broadly to refer to local city or county government. The task of permitting and regulating development and construction falls to local government entities. In some cases, local government owns and manages shelters or transitional/affordable housing.
This section is provided to help share the perspective of housing providers with respect to fair housing law. Numerous web sites, including www.hud.gov focus exclusively on tenant rights and how to file complaints, but few resources exist to let providers know their rights and responsibilities, how to promote compliance or the resources available to them should they receive a complaint.
Refugees and Fair Housing Law - What every provider should know TODAY
One of the many challenges refugees and their sponsoring agencies face is securing decent, safe and affordable housing near public transportation and employment. For some, western housing construction, layout and systems take some getting used to; that’s a cultural and social issue, and can be addressed with case management. Another issue involves credit and background checks required by most, if not all, landlords and property management companies.
Refugees were in fact responsible and successful homeowners in their native country prior to forced relocation. They can succeed here as well if given the chance. Every refugee receives cash and/or housing assistance for several months after their arrival. They also receive extensive case management and support from local resettlement agencies to secure employment and adjust to life in their new community.
Fair housing law requires housing providers to treat every applicant equally, and that places a burden on them to document credit, rental and criminal history for each applicant without exception. For those who lack any history in these areas, official refugee status (Section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act), provides “immediate lawful status with all the rights and privileges of a U.S. citizen (except the right to vote or work for a government entity.)
There is some irony here for all involved; for years, strict fair housing testing and enforcement have had the desired impact on providers, who are now more focused than ever on compliance, and avoid any flexibility or perceived subjectivity in the tenant screening process. Landlords are reduced to using the same yardstick to measure all applicants. When asked now by advocates to treat refugees ‘differently,’ many providers are understandably leery of deviating from the bright line drawn for them by HUD and its enforcement contractors for many years.
Accepting alternate documentation.We all need to expand our concept of ‘documentation’ to remain compliant as this situation evolves. Refugees are brought into this country for resettlement by the U.S. State Department, and carefully screened by the Department of Homeland Security, United Nations refugee Agency. Here are some examples of alternate documentation:
To get the facts and contacts regarding renting to refugees, download the “Renting to Refugees” page or contact the following agencies:
Agency for New Americans……………..208.338.0033
Idaho Office for Refugees……………….208.336.4222
International Rescue Committee……208.344.1792
World Relief…………………………………208.323.4964
English Language Center……………….208.336.5533
Renting to Refugees (pdf)
Educational Resources for Providers
You’re looking at a great educational resource right now. This web site contains an FAQ & Glossary page that serves as a basic primer for those getting up to speed on fair housing law, or for anyone with a specific question about terminology. Our information on Limited English Proficiency (LEP) will prove useful to communities and providers alike. Look for more robust on-line training opportunities in the near future.
Another great resource for providers is Fair Housing Accessibility First! FHAF contracts with HUD to provide fair housing training with an emphasis on FH Design and Construction Requirements. FHF offers a toll-free Design and Construction Resource Center: (888) 341-7781 (V/TTY)
Many Idaho providers have had good experiences contacting HUD’s FHEO experts for technical assistance or to learn techniques for compliance.
In Idaho, contact the Boise Field Office at (208) 334-1990 / email the Idaho FHEO contact or call the Seattle Hub office toll-free at 1-800-877-0246
Idaho’s ADA Task Force also provides technical support and training for accessible Design and Construction of the built environment, with particular expertise in the Americans with Disabilities Act. 208-344-5590 (V/TTY)
While Idaho’s fair housing advocates (i.e., Idaho Legal Aid Services, Intermountain Fair Housing Council, Idaho Human Rights Commission) are key to understanding local testing and enforcement patterns and practices, there are also civil rights attorneys who specialize in educating housing providers and communities on fair housing practices and the rights of providers to representation in related cases.
Other resources
Career opportunity? Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists (CAPS).As IHFA’s Erik Kingston likes to tell folks, “we’re all seniors-in-training,” and should start creating housing and neighborhoods to accommodate the wave of Baby Boomers hitting 50 and up. This is clearly a growing market segment, as those of near fifty plan ahead for our own needs or those of older family members. If you’re a handyperson, contractor or involved in the building industry in some way, check out the following article on adaptive remodeling to extend the ‘liveability’ of our homes (thanks to HUD’s Brian Dale for forwarding this one):
Flexible By Design: Builders make homes more accessible for young and old
For more information on building and remodeling accessible (read marketable) housing, click here.
housingidaho.com / vivendaidaho.com. A free,bilingual / ADA-compliant online rental listing and locator service with full-time bilingual customer support for landlords, tenants, case managers and housing authorities. Listing properties and site promotion help providers satisfy ‘affirmative marketing’ and LEP requirements. www.housingidaho.com.
Socialserve.com. A 501 (c)3 nonprofit serving the needs of U.S. housing consumers, providers and advocates, as well as response teams involved in mass relocation following large-scale disasters. See more at Socialserve.com.
Civil rights education/defense
Please note. The Fair Housing Forum does not endorse any particular counsel or entity, but encourages housing providers and communities to fully research all educational and legal resources available to them and to seek professional legal counsel in anything that could create exposure to liability. We are happy to add additional professional resources as they are proposed to provide balanced perspective. Some entities below are included because they provide training in Fair Housing law.
Idaho Volunteer Lawyer Program: www2.state.id.us/isb/pub_info/ivlp.htm
Idaho State Bar Lawyer Referral Service: http://www2.state.id.us/isb/pub_info/lrs.htm
Terry L. Kitay, Attorney at Law.Ms Kitay provides Fair Housing education and training, primarily for housing providers and specializes in Civil Rights law; primarily representing housing industry and providers (founding partner, Fair Housing Institute now in private practice). www.kitaylaw.net
Fair Housing Institute. Publisher of the Fair Housing Highlighter. Specializing in Civil Rights law; primarily representing housing industry and providers. www.fairhouse.net
