Fair Housing Laws: Who Do They Protect In Georgia?

The Fair Housing Act guarantees every American citizen the right to fairness when renting, buying a home, or accessing a mortgage based on certain protected characteristics. The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination based on race, colour, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or familial status when individuals or families seek housing. The Georgia Fair Housing Law, passed 35 years ago, mirrors the federal statute and protects individuals and families in housing-related transactions, such as renting an apartment, taking out a mortgage for a new home, or purchasing homeowners insurance. The Georgia Fair Housing Division enforces the Georgia Fair Housing Law by investigating claims of unlawful discrimination in housing throughout the state.

Who enforces fair housing laws in Georgia?

The Georgia Fair Housing Act ensures that all Georgians can compete for housing within their economic means on a fair and equitable basis. The Act prohibits discrimination in housing and housing-related activities on the basis of disability, race, sex, colour, national origin, religion, or familial status.

The Fair Housing Division of the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity (GCEO) enforces the Georgia Fair Housing Law. The Division investigates claims of unlawful discrimination in housing throughout the state of Georgia. It also provides educational outreach and training to promote voluntary compliance with Fair Housing laws.

If you believe your fair housing rights have been violated, you may submit a complaint to the GCEO or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). You can write, fax, call, or submit your complaint online. You have a year to file a complaint, but it is recommended to do so as soon as possible.

Once a complaint is filed, fair housing investigators will:

• Investigate the complaint
• Collect relevant facts and data and interview parties and witnesses
• Assist both parties in reaching an agreement
• Make a determination based on the investigation findings

What are the protected characteristics?

The Georgia Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and housing-related activities based on the following protected characteristics:

Disability

A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities, such as performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, learning, working, and self-care. Landlords cannot require disabled people to reside in units equipped for the handicapped and must allow them to choose from any available units.

Race

This includes individuals who are White, Black/African American, Asian, American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, or members of two or more of these groups.

National Origin

This refers to an individual's birthplace or ancestry.

Color

The visible color of someone's skin.

Religion

This includes the practice of a religious tradition as well as the non-practice of one. It also covers religious practices outside mainstream traditions.

Sex

An individual's biological sex, sexual orientation, and/or gender identity.

Familial Status

This includes households with children under 18, pregnant women, and families going through the adoption process. It also covers foster children and grandchildren if the individual has legal custody or written permission.

What conduct is prohibited?

The Georgia Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and housing-related activities on the basis of disability, race, sex, colour, national origin, religion, or familial status. The following conduct is prohibited:

• Refusing to rent or sell a house.
• Falsely denying that a house is available for inspection, sale, or rent.
• Offering different terms, conditions, or privileges for certain people.
• Intimidating, interfering with, or coercing someone to prevent them from buying or leasing a dwelling.
• Advertising or posting notices, sale or rental, that indicate a preference, limitation, or discrimination.
• Discriminating through financing or broker’s services.
• "Steering" of clients by real estate agents to or from certain neighbourhoods and of tenants by landlords to or from certain areas of the complex.
• Failing to accept or consider a bona fide offer because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Refusing to sell or rent a dwelling to, or to negotiate for the sale or rental of a dwelling with any person because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Imposing different sales prices or rental charges for the sale or rental of a dwelling upon any person because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Using different qualification criteria or applications, or sale or rental standards or procedures, such as income standards, application requirements, application fees, credit analysis or sale or rental approval procedures or other requirements, because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Evicting tenants because of their race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin or because of the race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin of a tenant's guest.
• Failing or delaying maintenance or repairs of sale or rental dwellings because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Failing to process an offer for the sale or rental of a dwelling or to communicate an offer accurately because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Limiting the use of privileges, services or facilities associated with a dwelling because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin of an owner, tenant or a person associated with him or her.
• Denying or limiting services or facilities in connection with the sale or rental of a dwelling, because a person failed or refused to provide sexual favours.
• Discouraging any person from inspecting, purchasing or renting a dwelling because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or because of the race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin of persons in a community, neighbourhood or development.
• Discouraging the purchase or rental of a dwelling because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, by exaggerating drawbacks or failing to inform any person of desirable features of a dwelling or of a community, neighbourhood, or development.
• Communicating to any prospective purchaser that he or she would not be comfortable or compatible with existing residents of a community, neighbourhood, or development because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Assigning any person to a particular section of a community, neighbourhood or development, or to a particular floor of a building, because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Discharging or taking other adverse action against an employee, broker or agent because he or she refused to participate in a discriminatory housing practice.
• Employing codes or other devices to segregate or reject applicants, purchasers or renters, refusing to take or to show listings of dwellings in certain areas because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or refusing to deal with certain brokers or agents because they or one or more of their clients are of a particular race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Denying or delaying the processing of an application made by a purchaser or renter or refusing to approve such a person for occupancy in a cooperative or condominium dwelling because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Refusing to provide municipal services or property or hazard insurance for dwellings or providing such services or insurance differently because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Making, printing or publishing, or causing to be made, printed or published, any notice, statement or advertisement with respect to the sale or rental of a dwelling that indicates any preference, limitation or discrimination because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or any intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.
• Representing to any person because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin that a dwelling is not available for sale or rental when such dwelling is in fact available.
• Engaging in blockbusting practices in connection with the sale or rental of dwellings because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Denying access to or membership or participation in, or discriminating against any person in their access to or membership or participation in, any multiple-listing service, real estate brokers' association, or other service organization or facility relating to the business of selling or renting a dwelling or in the terms or conditions or membership or participation, because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Setting different fees for access to or membership in a multiple-listing service because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Denying or limiting benefits accruing to members in a real estate brokers' organization because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Imposing different standards or criteria for membership in a real estate sales or rental organization because of race, colour, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
• Establishing geographic boundaries or office location or residence requirements for access to or membership or participation in

Who must comply with fair housing laws?

In Georgia, fair housing laws apply to landlords, mortgage lenders, insurance companies, real estate agents, property managers, homeowner associations, and condo boards. These entities are prohibited from discriminating against individuals or families based on their membership in a protected class.

Protected classes include race, colour, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. Race refers to someone's ethnicity, including White, Black/African American, Asian, American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander. National origin refers to an individual's birthplace or ancestry. Colour refers to the visible colour of someone's skin. Religion includes the practice of religious traditions, as well as the non-practice of religion and religious practices outside the mainstream. Sex refers to an individual's biological sex, sexual orientation, and/or gender identity. Familial status includes households with children under 18, pregnant women, and families going through the adoption process. Disability means an individual has a physical or mental impairment that limits major life activities.

The laws apply to transactions such as taking out a home mortgage, getting an appraisal, purchasing homeowners insurance, and renting or selling a home.

If you believe your fair housing rights have been violated in Georgia, you can file a complaint with the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity (GCEO) or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

What are the penalties for violating fair housing laws?

The Georgia Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and housing-related activities on the basis of disability, race, sex, colour, national origin, religion, or familial status. The Fair Housing Division of the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity (GCEO) enforces the Georgia Fair Housing Law by investigating claims of unlawful discrimination in housing. If you believe you have been a victim of housing discrimination, you can file a complaint with the GCEO or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

If you file a complaint, fair housing investigators will:

• Investigate the complaint
• Collect relevant facts and data and interview parties and witnesses
• Assist both parties in reaching an agreement
• Make a determination based on the investigation findings

If the dispute cannot be resolved through conciliation, the GCEO will conduct an objective and timely investigation to determine whether unlawful discrimination has occurred. If there is reasonable cause to believe discrimination has occurred, the investigation could result in various forms of relief for the complainant.

Penalties for Violating Fair Housing Laws

Violating fair housing laws can expose landlords to hefty financial and/or legal repercussions. There are two main types of housing discrimination penalties:

• Compensatory damages and the security deposit: This may include out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the tenant in finding alternative housing.
• Civil penalties: These can range from as low as $16,000 to over $100,000, depending on whether the offence is a one-time or repeat offence.

In addition, landlords may be penalised punitive damages and be made liable for paying non-economic damages to the tenant.

Frequently asked questions