Fair housing laws as a concept are pretty easy to understand, follow, and support. Don’t discriminate, and you’re good.
There’s actually a lot more to it than that.
Understanding fair housing laws requires that you not only avoid discriminating, but that you have a grasp of how discrimination is perceived.
We know that this is an area of the law that can seem confusing and overwhelming to a lot of landlords and rental property owners. We’re your first line of defense when it comes to avoiding legal pitfalls and perplexities. Count on the Real Estate Gladiators to protect you from easy and expensive mistakes.
Here’s our comprehensive guide to understanding fair housing laws on a federal and state level. We’ll talk about where owners most often go wrong and how to protect yourself against claims, violations, and bad practices.
The Federal Fair Housing Act (FHA)
Let’s start with the federal laws.
The Federal Fair Housing Act is a key piece of civil rights legislation that was passed in 1968 as part of the Civil Rights Act. It is designed to eliminate discrimination in housing practices and ensure that everyone, regardless of their race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability, has equal access to housing opportunities. The law’s primary goal is to promote fair treatment in the housing market, creating space for diversity and inclusivity in communities across the United States.
The Fair Housing Act applies to both private and public housing transactions, including renting, buying, and financing homes. Landlords, real estate agents, mortgage lenders, and other housing providers must comply with the provisions of the Act to prevent discriminatory practices that limit access to housing based on protected characteristics. The law’s protections extend to a wide range of activities, including advertising, leasing, sales, and even the conditions of housing itself.
The Fair Housing Act makes it unlawful for housing providers to engage in discrimination in several key areas:
- Refusing to Rent or Sell
Landlords cannot refuse to rent or sell a property to someone based on their race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, or disability. These are called protected classes. For example, a landlord cannot refuse to rent an apartment to a qualified tenant simply because they belong to a particular racial group or religion.
- Different Terms or Conditions
Housing providers cannot offer different terms or conditions based on a person’s protected characteristics. This could include charging higher rent or imposing different security deposit requirements for certain individuals. For instance, offering lower-quality maintenance or less favorable terms to families with children is a form of discrimination.
- Advertising
The FHA also prohibits discriminatory advertising. Housing advertisements cannot indicate a preference or limitation based on any of the protected characteristics. For example, an ad that says “No children allowed” or “Only Caucasians need apply” would be illegal under the Act.
- Harassment or Intimidation
The Fair Housing Act also includes provisions against harassment, intimidation, and coercion. Landlords or others involved in housing transactions cannot engage in actions that intimidate or harass a person based on their race, religion, gender, or other protected class.
- Disability Protections
This is one of the fastest growing areas of the law when it comes to fair housing claims and cases. The FHA also requires housing providers to make reasonable accommodations and modifications for individuals with disabilities. This could mean allowing a tenant with a disability to make changes to the property, such as installing grab bars in a bathroom or allowing a service animal in a no-pets building.
Special Protections under the FHA
| Familial Status
The Act protects families with children, ensuring that parents are not discriminated against because they have young children or expect to have children. It also prohibits housing policies that impose unnecessary restrictions on families, such as limiting children to certain areas of the building. |
Disability
In addition to requiring reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities, the Fair Housing Act mandates that newly constructed multifamily units be accessible to individuals with mobility impairments. This includes features such as wider doorways, lower counter heights, and accessible bathrooms. |
Enforcement of the Fair Housing Act is carried out by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which investigates complaints and takes legal action when necessary. Complaints can be filed by individuals who believe they’ve been discriminated against, or they can be filed by advocates on behalf of others. HUD also works with local agencies to enforce the law.
If a violation is found, HUD has the authority to seek remedies, which may include monetary damages, requiring the housing provider to make changes to their policies or practices, and even revoking licenses or permits for repeat offenders. Additionally, individuals who believe they have been victims of discrimination can also take legal action through the court system. From what we understand, fair housing penalties can cost tens of thousands of dollars. That’s not a mistake you want to make.
For landlords, understanding and complying with the Federal Fair Housing Act is critical to avoiding legal issues and promoting a more inclusive rental environment. Ensuring that all potential tenants are treated equally, regardless of their background, not only keeps you in compliance with the law but also opens up your rental property to a wider pool of applicants. Creating an inclusive and fair environment in your rental practices can improve your reputation and help build a stronger, more diverse community.
That’s the federal act. Let’s talk about state laws.
Fair Housing in Washington State
Washington State Fair Housing laws prohibit discrimination in housing based on a wider range of factors than the federal Fair Housing Act. These factors include all the federal protected classes: race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability, as well as the state protected classes: marital status, creed, HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C status, sexual orientation (including gender identity), and veteran/military status.
Some smaller jurisdictions within Washington offer additional discrimination protections. For instance, discrimination against Section 8 (Housing Choice) Voucher holders is illegal in the cities of:
- Seattle
- Bellevue
- Redmond
- Unincorporated King County
State Fair housing laws prohibit the following actions:
- Refusing to rent to someone because of their protected class, or being deceptive about a property not being available.
- Discriminating in the terms and conditions of rental because of a resident’s protected class.
- Making, printing or publishing a notice, statement, or advertisement that indicates any preference, limitation, or discrimination based on a protected class. For example, advertising a preference for a Christian tenant is discriminatory against non-Christians.
- Retaliating against a resident or applicant because he or she has asserted fair housing rights or has been a witness in a fair housing investigation.
Fair housing laws also protect applicants and residents who live with or are associated with people in protected groups. If a tenant has relatives, friends, roommates, subtenants or other relationships with people in any of the protected categories, the tenant cannot be penalized or treated differently.
Failing to provide reasonable accommodations to a person with a disability, refusing a service animal, or charging pet fees for emotional support animals are examples of discrimination according to fair housing laws.
Common Fair Housing Challenges for Rental Property Owners
Where do things go wrong the most often? In our experience, it’s with screening and service animals.
Screening tenants is one of the most important steps in successful rental management—but it’s also a process that can open landlords up to liability if not done correctly. In Washington State, even unintentional missteps during tenant screening can lead to fair housing violations. Here’s how landlords can avoid common screening errors while remaining compliant with state and federal laws.
- Tenant Screening and Fair Housing
One of the most common fair housing mistakes is applying different standards to different applicants. For example, if you ask one applicant for proof of income but not another, you could be accused of discrimination, even if your intent was harmless.
To stay compliant, create a written tenant screening criteria sheet that outlines what you require from every applicant. This may include:
| Minimum credit score | Rental history and eviction checks |
| Verifiable income requirements | Criminal background parameters (within legal limits) |
Give a copy of this screening criteria to each applicant and apply it the same way, every time.
In Washington State, you cannot reject an applicant solely based on arrest records or certain convictions, especially without considering the nature and timing of the offense. Blanket bans on criminal history are likely to violate fair housing protections under state law and HUD guidelines.
Instead, evaluate criminal history on a case-by-case basis. Consider whether the conviction is relevant to tenancy (for example, a violent crime versus a decade-old offense unrelated to housing), and document your reasoning in writing if you deny someone based on criminal history.
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Income While it’s reasonable to require proof of income, issues can arise if you make assumptions about how applicants earn their money. For instance, denying someone because you don’t like their legal source of income, such as Social Security, a housing voucher, or child support, is not going to hold up in court if you’re accused of discrimination. Landlords must treat all legal sources of income equally. Also, verify income using objective methods like pay stubs, tax returns, or benefit statements rather than relying on informal judgments or stereotypes. |
Don’t make disability-related assumptions. During screening, never ask an applicant if they have a disability or make assumptions based on their appearance or behavior. If someone requests a reasonable accommodation, such as a wheelchair ramp or a dedicated parking spot, you cannot deny the application based only on that request. You can ask for limited documentation to verify a disability-related need, but you may not demand personal medical records or question the legitimacy of a certified service animal.
Document everything in the screening process. Always keep records of every application you receive, including when and why you accepted or denied each tenant. Detailed documentation helps protect you if a complaint is ever filed.
By keeping your screening process transparent, consistent, and grounded in objective criteria, you can reduce the risk of fair housing violations and ensure a smoother leasing process for everyone involved.
- Service and Support Animals
Navigating requests for service and companion animals can be challenging for landlords and rental property owners, and we see a lot of mistakes made, especially among those who are managing on their own, without the benefit of professional property management help. A mistake with service and support animals can lead to costly fair housing violations. These animals are not pets and are protected under both federal and state fair housing laws. Understanding the distinction between service animals and companion animals, and how to properly respond to requests involving them, is essential to staying compliant with fair housing laws.
Know the Difference: Service vs. Companion Animals
| Service animals are typically dogs (and in rare cases, miniature horses) trained to perform specific tasks for individuals with disabilities, such as guiding someone who is blind or alerting a person who is about to have a seizure. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), service animals must be allowed in most public areas, including rental properties. | Companion animals, also referred to as emotional support animals (ESAs), do not require specific training but provide emotional or psychological benefits to individuals with disabilities. These are protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA), not the ADA. |
Neither service animals nor companion animals are considered “pets,” which means landlords cannot apply standard pet rules. You cannot restrict breeds, sizes, types of animals. You cannot collect a pet deposit or a pet fee. You cannot add pet rent to the tenant’s rent every month.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
These are the most frequent errors that seem to occur when we’re talking about service animals and support animals and the tenants who need them.
| Charging Pet Fees or Deposits
One of the most frequent mistakes is charging pet-related fees for service or companion animals. This is a violation of fair housing laws. Landlords cannot require pet rent, deposits, or fees for these animals, even if they typically apply such charges to tenants with pets. |
Denying Requests Without Proper Review
Landlords may not outright deny a request just because an animal doesn’t “look like” a service animal or seems unconventional. Instead, they must follow a specific process. If the disability is not obvious, you may ask for documentation that the tenant has a disability and needs the animal. You may not ask for details about the diagnosis or access medical records. You may not require certification or special ID tags for the animal. For service animals, if the need is apparent (e.g., a seeing-eye dog with a blind tenant), you cannot request documentation. |
| Applying Pet Policies to Assistance Animals
Your “no pets” policy does not apply. Breed, size, and weight restrictions must also be waived for service and companion animals. If your insurance policy restricts certain breeds, consult a fair housing attorney before denying an animal based on this concern—it’s a gray area that may not shield you from liability. |
Retaliating or Treating the Tenant Differently
Once an accommodation is approved, do not treat the tenant differently, restrict access, or require them to use special entrances. Doing so could lead to a fair housing complaint. |
| Failing to Engage in the Interactive Process
Washington landlords are expected to engage in an interactive process with the tenant to understand their accommodation needs. Ignoring or quickly denying a request without proper review could be considered discrimination. |
Stay Compliant and Reduce Risk
To stay compliant, establish a clear, written accommodation policy that aligns with state and federal guidelines. Train your property management team to handle requests appropriately, and consult a fair housing professional if you’re unsure how to respond. |
Respectful and lawful handling of assistance animal requests is not just about avoiding penalties. Trust us. It’s also about creating a fair and inclusive rental experience.
How to Handle Fair Housing Complaints
We have given you a comprehensive list of the mistakes that are usually made and the situations and processes that require extra attention to fair housing issues. But, what if a tenant files a fair housing complaint against you? It’s important that you take it seriously. Here’s how to respond:
- Stay calm and cooperative. Even if you believe the complaint is unfounded, a defensive or hostile attitude can escalate the situation.
- Review your records. Your documentation should clearly show that you followed your written policies and treated the tenant fairly.
- Consult legal counsel. An experienced attorney can guide you through the process and help you respond appropriately. If you’re not sure where to turn, get in touch with us at Real Estate Gladiators. We can get the process moving and recommend a great attorney.
- Cooperate with investigations. Whether it’s a complaint being investigated by state or federal authorities, it’s important to be clear, transparent, and honest. Be prepared to provide documentation and answer questions.
Let’s not make any fair housing mistakes. Reach out to us, instead. Contact us at Real Estate Gladiators. We serve Monroe, Issaquah, Bellevue, Everett, Lake Stevens, Kirkland, and other cities in and around King and Snohomish counties in Washington State.
