Did you know...
That it illegal for anyone to discriminate against you in housing because of:
•· RACE
•· COLOR
•· RELIGION
•· SEX
•· NATIONAL ORIGIN
•· PHYSICAL OR MENTAL HANDICAP
•· FAMILIAL STATUS (FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN)
Federal Fair Housing Laws apply to the sale, rental and financing of residential housing...including apartments, single family homes, mobile homes AND vacant lots to be used for housing. Furthermore...ANYONE who is involved in selling, renting or financing residential property MUST OBEY THE LAW! Therefore, ALL property owners, ALL property managers, ALL real estate agents, ALL landlords, ALL loan officers, ALL builders, ALL developers, ALL mortgage companies, ALL banks and ALL INDIVIDUAL HOMEOWNERS WHO ARE SELLING OR RENTING their property MUST follow the Fair Housing Law.
Here are a few examples of fair housing violations that I have personally witnessed during my career as a REALTOR® in North Carolina:
•· My clients, a Hispanic family, made an offer on a home that had been on the market for almost a year. When I delivered the offer to the listing agent, she said "Umm...aren't these names ‘Gonzalez' and ‘Gomez' Hispanic names?" I replied "Are you sure you really want to ask me that question?" She said "Well, my seller is not going to sell to any of ‘them'. I can tell you that right now. She already turned down three other offers to ‘those people', and she told me not to bring her anymore offers from ********." I simply replied "I'll expect your client's response within two hours. If I don't hear from you, I'll be contacting the Real Estate Commission to file a complaint." Two hours later, we were under contract.
•· While studying to become a licensed REALTOR®, I worked in a real estate office in Raleigh, NC. One afternoon, I answered a call from a gentleman who was inquiring about a home we had for sale. He informed me that he had been trying to contact the listing agent for days...leaving message after message. After apologizing, I placed the gentleman on hold and notified the listing agent of the call...warning him that the gentleman was concerned that no one had called him back. The listing agent then replied "Oh...well...tell him I'm not here. The owner ain't gonna sell to no ****** and there ain't nothing I can do about it." Still new to the business, I stood there in utter shock at his statement. Then, I told him that I was not there to do his dirty work...that he needed to handle the gentleman with dignity and respect.
•· More times than I can count, I have listened as my clients have shared their experiences of working with other agents who refused to show them homes in the areas they wished to live...showing them only homes in neighborhoods with a predominance of their race. This is called steering, and it is illegal!
•· Years ago, I met a Hispanic family who paid rent based on the number of ‘heads' in the home. I later learned that this is an all too common practice in North Carolina and the South. This same landlord refused to make any repairs in the home...stating "'They' are used to living like pigs."
If you believe that you have been the victim of a fair housing violation, you should contact your state and local government fair housing center. Visit the National Fair Housing Alliance website for more information or to locate the fair housing center in your area. You can also research fair housing violations and learn more about the Federal Fair Housing Law at http://www.fairhousinglaw.org/.
FAIR HOUSING is NOT an option...it is the LAW!
Written and Posted by:
Elizabeth Nieves - Broker, REALTOR® -- The Elizabeth Nieves Realty Group @ Keller Williams (A Bilingual Real Estate Team serving Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill NC and surrounding areas.)
That it illegal for anyone to discriminate against you in housing because of:
•· RACE
•· COLOR
•· RELIGION
•· SEX
•· NATIONAL ORIGIN
•· PHYSICAL OR MENTAL HANDICAP
•· FAMILIAL STATUS (FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN)
Federal Fair Housing Laws apply to the sale, rental and financing of residential housing...including apartments, single family homes, mobile homes AND vacant lots to be used for housing. Furthermore...ANYONE who is involved in selling, renting or financing residential property MUST OBEY THE LAW! Therefore, ALL property owners, ALL property managers, ALL real estate agents, ALL landlords, ALL loan officers, ALL builders, ALL developers, ALL mortgage companies, ALL banks and ALL INDIVIDUAL HOMEOWNERS WHO ARE SELLING OR RENTING their property MUST follow the Fair Housing Law.
NOW you know what the law says...BUT do you know what
HOUSING DISCRIMINATION looks like?
Here are a few examples of fair housing violations that I have personally witnessed during my career as a REALTOR® in North Carolina:
•· My clients, a Hispanic family, made an offer on a home that had been on the market for almost a year. When I delivered the offer to the listing agent, she said "Umm...aren't these names ‘Gonzalez' and ‘Gomez' Hispanic names?" I replied "Are you sure you really want to ask me that question?" She said "Well, my seller is not going to sell to any of ‘them'. I can tell you that right now. She already turned down three other offers to ‘those people', and she told me not to bring her anymore offers from ********." I simply replied "I'll expect your client's response within two hours. If I don't hear from you, I'll be contacting the Real Estate Commission to file a complaint." Two hours later, we were under contract.
•· While studying to become a licensed REALTOR®, I worked in a real estate office in Raleigh, NC. One afternoon, I answered a call from a gentleman who was inquiring about a home we had for sale. He informed me that he had been trying to contact the listing agent for days...leaving message after message. After apologizing, I placed the gentleman on hold and notified the listing agent of the call...warning him that the gentleman was concerned that no one had called him back. The listing agent then replied "Oh...well...tell him I'm not here. The owner ain't gonna sell to no ****** and there ain't nothing I can do about it." Still new to the business, I stood there in utter shock at his statement. Then, I told him that I was not there to do his dirty work...that he needed to handle the gentleman with dignity and respect.
•· More times than I can count, I have listened as my clients have shared their experiences of working with other agents who refused to show them homes in the areas they wished to live...showing them only homes in neighborhoods with a predominance of their race. This is called steering, and it is illegal!
•· Years ago, I met a Hispanic family who paid rent based on the number of ‘heads' in the home. I later learned that this is an all too common practice in North Carolina and the South. This same landlord refused to make any repairs in the home...stating "'They' are used to living like pigs."
If you believe that you have been the victim of a fair housing violation, you should contact your state and local government fair housing center. Visit the National Fair Housing Alliance website for more information or to locate the fair housing center in your area. You can also research fair housing violations and learn more about the Federal Fair Housing Law at http://www.fairhousinglaw.org/.
FAIR HOUSING is NOT an option...it is the LAW!
Written and Posted by:
Elizabeth Nieves - Broker, REALTOR® -- The Elizabeth Nieves Realty Group @ Keller Williams (A Bilingual Real Estate Team serving Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill NC and surrounding areas.)
