KPLU Local News
(2010-02-08)
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If you're a landlord, it's illegal to refuse to rent to someone because of their race, religion or disability. That has been the law for more than forty years. But, apparently the message has not gotten through to everyone.
The Fair Housing Center of Washington, based in Tacoma, uses a very simple investigative method. It will send a white woman and an African American woman out and have them contact the same landlords. Housing Center spokeswoman Lauren Walker says the results are almost always disheartening.
"It shocks me every time when I see the differences in treatment. The African American testers are told about higher prices for apartments. They're told about fewer units and sometimes they're told about later availability dates than the Caucasian testers," she said.
And, Walker says it isn't just race based discrimination that continues to be a problem.
In the past year, the Fair Housing Center has tested for discrimination against people who have disabilities. The biggest issue has been landlords unwilling to rent to someone with a guide dog. Walker says people need to understand that a "no pets" policy can not be applied to service animals.
The Fair Housing Center was just awarded one of two federal grants in the state to help enforce the Fair Housing Act. The grant is for $275,000.
The Fair Housing Act was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson back in 1968. For the past five years, Washington state has averaged 270 complaints filed under the Fair Housing Act. © Copyright 2012, KPLU
