April is recognized as National Fair Housing Month, in commemoration of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which was enacted on April 11th of that year. The 1968 Civil Rights Act included the Fair Housing Act, which established protections and enforcement mechanisms for people looking to buy or rent housing in the United States. Virginians also have some additional protections under the Virginia Fair Housing Law, which was most recently amended in 2021.
This article will review the protections that people have under state and federal fair housing laws in Virginia, as well as the resources you can access if you experience housing discrimination.
When Do Fair Housing Laws Apply?
Fair housing laws apply in any housing or real estate transaction. This can include renting an apartment, buying a home, applying for a mortgage, seeking renter’s or homeowner’s insurance, etc. These regulations require that all individuals be treated fairly in their search for housing – regardless of their status as members of a “protected class.”
What is a Protected Class?
Certain groups of people – also referred to as a “protected class” – cannot be refused or denied housing opportunities solely based on their personal characteristics. Under the Virginia Fair Housing Law, the following traits have protected class status:
- Race or color: A person’s racial or ethnic identity.
- Religion: The religion a person practices or holds.
- Some exceptions apply in cases of faith-based housing providers.
- National origin: The country someone comes from, or their current immigration status.
- Elderliness: Being above the age of 55.
- Familial status: Whether there are children in the family – for example, it would be unlawful for an apartment complex to deny a housing application just because the applicant has children living with them.
- There may also be limits on the number of people who can live in a home (occupancy standards) in order to prevent overcrowding.
- This measure does not include marital status. A landlord can legally refuse to rent an apartment to an unmarried couple.
- Source of funds: How someone pays for their housing – this commonly applies to households who use housing choice vouchers (e.g., Section 8). It also covers those who rely on funding such as veterans benefits, child or spousal support, social security (e.g., SSI/SSDI), or rental assistance from a nonprofit.
- The source of funds used to pay for housing must be lawful, meaning that it is obtained in a legal way.
- Exceptions apply in some cases (e.g., age-restricted senior housing).
- Sexual orientation: Whether someone belongs to the LGBTQ+ community – for instance, a landlord cannot refuse to rent an apartment to a couple solely because they are not heterosexual (straight).
- Gender identity: A person’s gender or sex – for example, it was once legal for banks to refuse mortgage applications to women. This measure also applies to people who are transgender, non-binary, or identify with some other gender identity descriptor.
- Military status: Whether a person is connected to the United States Armed Forces. This includes military veterans and retirees, as well as members who are on Active Duty (including Reservists).
- Disability: This includes any perceived or actual physical or mental disability. In many cases, reasonable accommodations must be made to ensure equal access to housing. For example, a landlord cannot refuse to rent to someone with a service animal.
What Are Some Examples of Housing Discrimination?
- Refusing to sell or rent a home to someone because they belong to a protected class.
- Discriminating against someone (e.g., making degrading comments, harassing them, using threats, etc.) based on their belonging to a protected class.
- Treating applicants differently because they belong to a protected class – for instance, asking an applicant with a disability to provide additional financial documents, when this is not part of the application for non-disabled people.
- Advertising housing that is only available to certain types of people – for example, “no children allowed” or “Section 8 need not apply.”
- Making false statements to someone in a protected class about the availability of the property – for instance, telling a single mother that a home is “no longer available” and then renting it to a married couple without children.
- Making statements about where someone “should” live based on their personal characteristics – for example, steering Black families towards one neighborhood, and white families to another.
What Can I Do If I Experience Housing Discrimination?
There are several organizations that may be able to assist you if you feel you have experienced housing discrimination – or if you’d just like to learn more.