The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a sweeping proposed rule on August 1 seeking to amend HUD’s interpretation of the Fair Housing Act’s disparate impact standard. According to HUD, the proposed rule is designed to better reflect the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling in Texas Department of Housing and Community
United States Senate to Consider Legislation Expanding Fair Housing Protection to LGBTQ Community
A bipartisan measure was introduced in the United States Senate in late April to expand fair housing protections to LGBTQ persons. The Fair and Equal Housing Act of 2019, introduced by Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Angus King (I-ME), and Tim Kaine (D-VA), would expressly include “sexual orientation and gender identity” as characteristics protected by
HUD Charges Facebook with Violating the Fair Housing Act over Targeted Ads
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced charges against social media company Facebook for violating the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601-3619 and 3631). The charges derive from Facebook enabling housing advertisers to target Facebook users based on protected class status: race, nationality, religion, color, familial status, sex, and disability.
HUD Demonstrates Continued Commitment to Aggressive Enforcement of the Fair Housing Act
Fifty years after the passage of the Fair Housing Act, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) continues to demonstrate a strong commitment to Fair Housing, both through the support of private enforcement and through its own public enforcement. HUD recently announced that 80 non-profit organizations committed to fair housing will receive
HUD Drastically Cuts Advance Notice for REAC Inspections
You are the property manager for a HUD-subsidized apartment development. One day, the owner of the development rushes into your office, visibly frantic. The owner says, “We just received a letter from HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) that REAC inspectors have scheduled the property for an inspection.” You respond, “Don’t worry — with extensions
DOJ Continues Fair Housing Act Enforcement Actions
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) recently filed a civil action in the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee against an apartment development and its property management company alleging violations of sections 3604(a) and 3604(b) of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Specifically, the complaint challenges the management company’s policy of
Eleventh Circuit Rules Reverse Mortgage Companies Not Prohibited from Foreclosing on Non-Borrowing Spouses
Mortgagees of Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (“HECMs,” more commonly known as reverse mortgages) obtained a significant victory in an important federal appellate court, which ruled last month that non-borrowing spouses are not protected from foreclosure by the statute authorizing the HECM program. In Estate of Jones v. Live Well Financial, Inc., the United States
HUD OIG Report Could be Precursor to Increased Partial Claim Reimbursement Demands
On September 21, 2018, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”)’s Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) completed a review of HUD’s partial claims program. In many ways, the title of the OIG audit report, “HUD Did Not Have Adequate Controls To Ensure That Partial Claim Notes for FHA Loans Were Properly Tracked for
Federal Appeals Court Holds that Landlord May Be Liable for Deliberate Indifference to Tenant-on-Tenant Discrimination
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently addressed a matter of first impression regarding landlord liability under the Fair Housing Act (FHA): whether a landlord may be liable under the FHA for failing to address tenant-on-tenant discrimination. The court answered with a resounding “yes,” holding that the FHA creates liability
HUD and DOJ Challenge Facebook’s Advertising Platforms under the Fair Housing Act
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has filed an administrative complaint against Facebook alleging discriminatory advertising in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). HUD alleges that housing advertisers can use Facebook’s advertising tools and algorithms to exclude applicants based on protected categories such as race, sex, or national origin. Four days