Legal & Fair Housing Compliance Flashcards

A prospective tenant tells you she has a service animal due to a visual impairment. The property has a strict no-pets policy. What is the legally correct response?

Answer: Allow the service animal as a reasonable accommodation under the Fair Housing Act

Service animals for people with disabilities must be permitted as a reasonable accommodation under the Fair Housing Act, regardless of a no-pets policy.

Under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), an apartment manager must:

Answer: Provide lease bifurcation options and protect victims from eviction solely based on being a victim

VAWA prohibits denying housing or evicting tenants solely because they are victims of domestic violence and requires lease bifurcation options.

A resident requests permission to add grab bars in the bathroom due to a mobility disability. The manager should:

Answer: Allow the modification at the resident's expense and may require restoration upon move-out

Under the Fair Housing Act, landlords must allow reasonable modifications for disabled residents, typically at the resident's expense, and may require restoration.

Which action by a property manager would constitute illegal steering under the Fair Housing Act?

Answer: Directing minority applicants only toward units in certain sections of the community

Steering is the illegal practice of directing prospective tenants toward or away from certain units based on protected class characteristics.

The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) as it relates to rental housing prohibits discrimination based on:

Answer: Race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or receipt of public assistance

ECOA prohibits discrimination in credit transactions, including rental applications, based on the listed protected classes.

A landlord includes a clause in the lease stating 'maximum two persons per one-bedroom apartment.' Under the Fair Housing Act, this occupancy standard:

Answer: May be challenged if it has a discriminatory effect on families with children

Overly restrictive occupancy standards can constitute familial status discrimination if they disproportionately exclude families with children.

Which statement best describes the concept of 'disparate impact' under fair housing law?

Answer: A neutral policy that has a disproportionate negative effect on a protected class without justification

Disparate impact occurs when a seemingly neutral policy disproportionately harms a protected class even without discriminatory intent.