Fair Housing Act Protections for Tenants, Buyers, and Borrowers

Section 3
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Fair Housing Act Protections for Tenants, Buyers, and Borrowers

Under the Fair Housing Act, people are prohibited from discriminating on certain bases when listing, selling, or renting a property. Discrimination can come in many forms and may not always be overt or immediately obvious.

Housing providers are prohibited from engaging in any of the following conduct because of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), familial status (including pregnancy and adoption), or disability:

  • Making housing unavailable or refusing to consider applications;
  • Changing terms or conditions of housing, or the provision of services or facilities related to housing;
  • Publishing discriminatory statements or advertisements;
  • Coercing, intimidating, threatening, or interfering with anyone exercising or enjoying a fair housing right or assisting others who exercise or enjoy the right;
  • Harassing anyone because of a protected characteristic, including sexual harassment (hostile environment or quid pro quo);
  • Retaliating against anyone because that person made a complaint, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in a proceeding under the Fair Housing Act, or because that person reported a discriminatory housing practice to a housing provider or other authority.

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