FAIR HOUSING

WHAT IS FAIR HOUSING?

Fair Housing means you have the right to live where you choose without fear of discrimination based on your protected characteristics. Fair Housing laws apply to all types of housing, including accessory dwelling units (ADUs), apartments, single-family homes, duplexes, condominiums, mobile home parks, residential motels, and emergency shelters.

Federal Fair Housing Laws

The Fair Housing Act (FHA) of 1968 is a federal law that protects people from discrimination based on their protected characteristics when they are renting or buying a home, getting a mortgage, seeking housing assistance, or engaging in other housing-related activities. The Fair Housing Act also provides procedures for handling individual complaints of discrimination.

California State Fair Housing Laws

In California, the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and the Unruh Civil Rights Act provide additional protection from housing discrimination. California law also protects people from discrimination and harassment that is based on the protected characteristic of their family member, friend, roommate, or any other associate. Additionally, the Ralph Act (§51.7 of the California Civil Code) prohibits violence or intimidation by threat of violence based on protected characteristics.

Protected characteristics include a person’s:

 

  • Race and/or Color
  • Gender
  • Physical and/or Mental Disability
  • Sexual Orientation
  • Age

 

 

  • Religion
  • Familial Status (Families
    with children under 18 yrs. old)
  • Marital Status
  • Primary Language*
  • Ancestry and/or National
    Origin

  • Source of Income
  • Military or Veteran Status*
  • Or Other Arbitrary Bias

 

*Specifically protected under California fair housing laws.

WHAT DOES HOUSING DISCRIMINATION LOOK LIKE?

Examples of actions that could be discriminatory if based on a person’s protected characteristic include:

  • Refusal to sell, rent or lease or to negotiate forthe sale, rent, or lease of housing.
  • Denial of a home loan or homeowner’s
    insurance.
  • Refusal to permit, at a disabled tenant’s
    expense, reasonable modifications to their unit
    or common areas.
  • Refusing to rent to a tenant with a Section 8 voucher.

 

  • Advertisements that express a preference (e.g.,
    “ideal for working professionals” or “Jewish only”).
  • Refusal to do timely repairs.
  • Rules that place restrictions only on families with
    children (e.g., prohibiting children from using an
    on-site pool).
  • Refusing to rent to anyone with a criminal history.
  • Screening prospective tenants in a way that
    discriminates based on a protected characteristic.
  • Retaliation against someone for filing a complaint
    with the Civil Rights Department (CRD) or
    otherwise trying to protect their rig

WHAT IS REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES?

The FEHA requires housing providers to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, and services to permit people with disabilities to use and enjoy a dwelling.

The law also allows people with disabilities to make reasonable modifications to the premises at their own expense.

Examples of reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities include adding a ramp, widening a doorway, installing a safety bar in a shower, or allowing necessary service and/or emotional support animals (not subject to breed, size, or weight restrictions ordinarily applied to pets) without requiring pet deposit or pet rent.

WHAT IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN HOUSING?

The Fair Housing Act and other federal laws prohibit sexual harassment in housing. The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination based on sex as well as other characteristics such as race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, or disability. There are two main types of sexual harassment: (1) quid pro quo sexual harassment and (2) hostile environment sexual harassment.

For more information on sexual harassment in housing, as well as tenant rights and resources regarding this issue, please visit the Sexual Harassment in Housing page.

WHY SHOULD I REPORT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION?

There are many reasons to report discrimination in housing, including:

  • Many acts of discrimination can only be investigated if someone reports them.
  • The law protects you from retaliation by your landlord if you report discrimination under the fair housing laws.
  • Reporting discrimination is the first step to stopping it in your community.
  • Reporting discrimination promotes long-term benefits for everyone. The laws that protect another person today may be the laws that will protect you tomorrow.
  • It is against the law.

HOW DO I REPORT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION?

If you feel you have been a victim of housing discrimination or would like to obtain additional information about the federal and state fair housing laws, please contact the Housing Rights Center.

The HRC is contracted with the County of Los Angeles to provide residents with free services including landlord-tenant counseling, outreach and education, litigation and advocacy and discrimination complaint investigation.

Housing Rights Center Contact Information
Toll-Free (800) 477-5977
TTY-Hearing Impaired – (213) 201-0867
www.housingrightscenter.org
info@housingrightscenter.org

Los Angeles Office
3255 Wilshire Blvd
Suite 1150
Los Angeles, CA 90010

Pasadena Office
Jackie Robinson Center
1020 N. Fair Oaks Avenue
Pasadena, CA 91103
Phone: 626-791-0211

Additional Resources:

Recursos Adicionales (Spanish)

추가 자료 (Korean)

La Cañada Flintridge Housing Element Programs that Promote Fair Housing

Access La Cañada Flintridge’s Fair Housing flyers here:

REMOVAL OF DISCRIMINATORY RACIAL COVENANTS: PROGRAM 22 OF THE 2021-2029 HOUSING ELEMENT

The City of La Cañada Flintridge is committed to being an inclusive city, making housing available to people of all races, ethnicities, abilities, and backgrounds.

In response, Program 22 of the City’s Housing Element provides homeowners with the following instructions on how to remove antiquated, unlawful, and discriminatory restrictions that may still appear in older property records, titles, and grant deeds.

WHAT ARE RACIALLY RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS?

“Covenants” are private contracts or conditions that appear in support of property grant deeds and titles. Not all covenants are bad – they typically regulate the use, access, or ongoing maintenance of a property, such as a shared driveway or utility line.

However, during the 1920s, with the rise of segregation in the United States, property owners and real estate entities began inserting “racially restrictive covenants” (also known as “racial covenants”) into property deeds to exclude minority groups from ownership or living in certain communities. These racial covenants would sometimes use subtle and veiled language promoting “exclusive” or “elite” residential communities. Other times, the language would be very direct and derogatory, listing specific people groups to be excluded. Sadly, these practices were once commonplace in California, including in La Cañada Flintridge, and sometimes, racial covenants still appear in property records.

WHAT IS THE LEGAL HISTORY?

In 1948, the U.S. Supreme Court (Shelley v. Kraemer) unanimously ruled that racial covenants were no longer legally enforceable, even if they were written into property deeds.

In 1968, the Federal Fair Housing Act formally classified all forms of discrimination in housing based on race, religion, national origin, sex, or familial status to be unconstitutional – further nullifying all racially restrictive covenants.

Today, all jurisdictions in California are responsible for working with their constituents to remove any racial covenant.

HOW DO I REMOVE A RACIAL COVENANT FROM MY PROPERTY?

In September 2021, California enacted Assembly Bill (AB) 1466, authorizing property owners, title and escrow companies, county recorders, and real estate professionals to process a Restrictive Covenant Modification to remove racially restrictive covenants from property records.

STEPS TO REMOVE A RACIAL COVENANT:

  1. Request a copy of your property’s Title Report from your title company of choice. Title Reports are typically requested during a real estate transaction, refinancing, or when applying for certain development project applications.
  2. Determine if your property has a racial covenant. If you find restrictions but are not clear if they are lawful or not, please consult with your title officer, real estate attorney, or City Planning.
  3. If a racial covenant or similar restriction is found, highlight or underline the unlawful provision in the document and complete the Restrictive Covenant Modifications Form on the County website.
  4. Submit the Restrictive Covenant Modification Form and the document with restrictive language highlighted/underlined to the County Recorder. Submission options:

    Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk – Document
    Analysis and Recording Section
    P.O. Box 1250
    Norwalk, CA 90651-1250

  5. Submissions will be reviewed by LA County to determine if the language contains an unlawful restriction. If so, the County will sign the form and record it. The recorded document will be returned by mail to the applicant. No payment is required as these documents are free to revise and record.

Interested in further reading on this topic?

If you are interested to learn more about this topic and how the larger region is addressing past racial inequities, please see the County of Los Angeles Racial Equity Strategic Plan.

Access La Cañada Flintridge’s Racial Covenant Removal flyer here: