Cases and Settlements

Community Pays $30K to Settle Alleged Discrimination Against Somali Testers

August 19, 2013    

Last week, the Justice Department announced that a Minnesota community and its property management company agreed to pay $30,000 to resolve a lawsuit alleging discrimination against Somali prospects on the basis of race and national origin.

Government Steps Up Enforcement of Accessibility Requirements

July 25, 2013    

There has been an uptick in the government’s efforts to detect and pursue violations of fair housing accessibility requirements. Since January 2009, HUD and its fair housing partners have investigated and either settled or charged 300 cases that alleged violations of the Fair Housing Act...

Community Must Pay $38K for Discriminatory Craigslist Ad

June 18, 2013    

A Massachusetts landlord and property manager have been ordered to pay more than $38,000 in a housing discrimination case alleging discriminatory online advertisements against families with young children, according to a recent announcement by Attorney General Martha Coakley.

La. Parish to Pay $2.5M to Resolve Post-Katrina Housing Discrimination Cases

May 30, 2013    

 

The Justice Department and HUD recently announced that St. Bernard Parish, La., has agreed to a settlement valued at more than $2.5 million to resolve separate lawsuits by the United States and private plaintiffs claiming that the parish sought to deny rental housing to African...

Oregon Developer to Pay $80K, Correct Accessibility Deficiencies

May 30, 2013    

The developer of a 275-unit rental community in Salem, Ore., recently agreed to pay $80,000 and remove accessibility barriers to resolve a lawsuit claiming disability discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

Tenn. Community Settles Claims of Discrimination Against Hispanic Tenants

May 30, 2013    

The owners and managers of a Nashville, Tenn., community recently agreed to pay more than $170,000 as part of a settlement resolving allegations that it discriminated against Hispanic tenants based on their national origin. According to HUD’s complaint, the community’s owners and...

N.M. Owner Settles Disability Discrimination Claim for $200K

April 24, 2013    

The owner and manager of rental property in Albuquerque, N.M., recently agreed to pay $200,000 to settle allegations of discrimination and retaliation against a tenant with a disability.

Occupancy Policy Leads to Discrimination Charge

April 24, 2013    

The owners and managers of 23 rental properties in Mississippi recently agreed to pay $27,000 to settle allegations of housing discrimination against families with children.

Mass. Landlord Pays $25K in Lead Paint Case

March 21, 2013    

The owner of a 60-unit apartment building in Cambridge, Mass., has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle allegations that he discriminated against a family with a young child to avoid an obligation to remove lead paint hazards and later retaliated against them for filing a discrimination complaint,...

Condo Complex Settles Claims of Discrimination Against Families with Children

February 21, 2013    

A Minnesota condo association and its property managers recently agreed to pay more than $40,000 to settle allegations that they refused to allow children under the age of 18 to live at the property.

In a complaint filed with HUD, a condo owner alleged that the condo association told him...

Settlement Marks First Enforcement Action Under HUD’s New LGBT Rule

January 24, 2013    

In January 2013, HUD announced an agreement with Bank of America to settle a claim that the mortgage lender refused to provide financing to a lesbian couple. The agreement is the first enforcement action taken against a lender involving HUD’s recent rule ensuring that its core housing...

Management Company Settles Claim of Discrimination Against Non-English Speakers

January 24, 2013    

In January 2013, HUD announced that a Virginia property management company agreed to pay $82,500 to settle allegations that it refused to allow an Hispanic woman to apply for an apartment because she didn’t speak fluent English.