Denied housing because of race, disability, family status, or source of income?
34,150 complaints filed in 2024. Algorithms showing bias. You have rights under Fair Housing Act.
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Denied housing, charged higher rent, or refused service based on race, color, religion, national origin
Denied reasonable accommodations, accessibility modifications, or discriminated against disabled tenant
Discriminated against based on having children or family size (no children policies)
Landlord or property manager sexual harassment, threats, or quid pro quo arrangements
Landlord refuses to make critical repairs (water, heat, mold) or violates habitability standards
Landlord withheld deposit without itemized list, or failed to return within legal timeframe
Denied housing because you receive Section 8, welfare, or other government assistance
Maria has a voucher worth $2,100/month. Perfect credit. Three kids, stable job at the hospital. Forty-seven apartment applications. Forty-seven rejections. Not one landlord said "we don't take Section 8." They don't have to anymore. The screening algorithm does it for them. CoreLogic, TransUnion, RealPage—they score tenants. Maria's score: 421 out of 850. Why? "Proprietary factors." Translation: She's poor, Hispanic, single mother. The AI learned what landlords want without being told. Discrimination automated, liability eliminated.
RealPage got caught. DOJ antitrust suit, October 2024. Their software, YieldStar, coordinates rent prices across 16 million units. Landlords input data, algorithm says "raise rent 14%," everyone raises together. Not collision if a computer does it. Except it is. And here's the beauty: Same algorithm screens tenants. Filters out anyone who'd struggle with the inflated rent. Creates the shortage that justifies the increase. Circle complete. Rent's up 30% since 2020. Homelessness up 12%. Connected? RealPage says no. Math says yes.
Facebook housing ads targeted by race until 2022. How'd they stop? They didn't. They got subtle:
HUD settled with Facebook for $115,000. Facebook's daily revenue: $349 million. That's 20 seconds of profit.
"We don't take Section 8" is illegal in California, New York, Massachusetts. Legal everywhere else. But even where it's illegal, workarounds flourish. Require income 3x rent—but vouchers don't count as income. Demand two months deposit—knowing voucher holders can't afford it. Application fee: $200, non-refundable. Apply to ten places, lose $2,000 before viewing a single apartment. The poverty tax on finding shelter.
Veterans with HUD-VASH vouchers? Same treatment. Served the country, can't find housing. Denver landlord told a Purple Heart recipient: "I support the troops, just not in my building." Legal. Texas landlord advertised "No government assistance including VA benefits." Legal. Florida complex banned "all voucher holders including disabled veterans." Legal. Thank you for your service, now sleep in your car.
Wheelchair user asks for ramp. "Architectural impossibility." Engineer says $3,000 would do it. Landlord's renovation budget last year: $400,000 for a gym nobody uses.
Common "reasonable accommodation" denials:
Average fair housing complaint resolution: 100 days. Average eviction: 3 weeks. Guess which one happens.
"Adults only community." Illegal since 1988. Still everywhere. Just rebranded. "Quiet professional environment." "Mature community." "No more than 2 heartbeats per bedroom" (actual lease clause, counting children as half a person). Pool hours: "No children after 5 PM" (when parents return from work). Playground removed for "insurance reasons." Noise complaints filed before move-in. The message is clear: Breed elsewhere.
Lisa, pregnant with her second child. Current apartment: two bedrooms. Lease renewal denied. "Occupancy standards." Two adults, two children, two bedrooms—supposedly illegal occupancy. HUD says 2 per bedroom is reasonable. Landlord's lawyer says "reasonableness is subjective." Eviction filed. Lisa moves to shelter. Landlord re-rents to couple with one child. Same bedrooms. Different equation. Children equal problems. Childless equals profit.
Invitation Homes owns 80,000 houses. Blackstone Group: 300,000 units. Pretium Partners: 70,000. They're not landlords. They're Excel spreadsheets with eviction lawyers.
The corporate playbook exposed:
Phoenix: Corporate landlords own 20% of rentals, file 33% of evictions. Atlanta: 15% ownership, 29% of evictions. It's not personal. It's portfolio management.
The testing studies prove everything. White tester, Black tester, same income, same credit. White tester shown three additional units. Black tester told "nothing else available." White tester offered move-in special. Black tester charged application fee. White tester gets tour. Black tester gets "we'll call you." Twenty-three cities tested in 2024. Discrimination found in 87% of tests. Consequences? Zero. Testing isn't entrapment if nobody prosecutes.
Climate change created new discrimination. Miami landlords screening for flood insurance claims. Paradise, California, fire survivors can't find rentals—"fire risk" becoming new redline. Houston apartments rejecting Hurricane Harvey victims. "Natural disaster survivor" isn't protected class. Yet. Insurance companies flee states. Landlords follow. Those who remain charge disaster premiums. $900 apartment becomes $1,400 because your last home flooded. Risk-based pricing for acts of God.
Fair Housing Act violations - what you can actually do:
Reality: Most victims can't wait 100 days for investigation. They need housing now. That's the system's design.
Housing discrimination didn't end with the Fair Housing Act. It got an MBA, learned Python, hired lobbyists. Now it hides behind algorithms, occupancy standards, source of income requirements. The redlines are invisible but the neighborhoods look the same. Integration remains a myth, segregation remains profitable, and Maria still can't find an apartment that takes her voucher. The American Dream includes a home. Fine print: Some Americans need not apply. The AI will filter you out before you know you were rejected. That's progress. That's the algorithm working exactly as designed.
Method: Have similarly-qualified people of different protected classes apply for the same unit. If they receive different treatment, that's evidence of discrimination.
Resources: Contact local fair housing organization to conduct official testing. Results admissible in court.
Look for: Does landlord have history of rejecting protected class members? Check tenant demographics. Search for previous HUD complaints against this landlord.
Public Records: HUD complaint database, court records, tenant reviews mentioning discrimination.
Save Everything: Emails, texts, voicemails showing bias. Even subtle statements like "this neighborhood is better for people like you" or "we prefer tenants without children" are evidence.
Important: Don't need explicit slurs. Coded language and "steering" also violate Fair Housing Act.
Neutral policies with discriminatory effect: Example - "No Section 8" policy has disparate impact on racial minorities. Criminal history bans disproportionately affect Black applicants. These can violate FHA even without intent.
Standard: If policy disproportionately harms protected class AND landlord has no legitimate business reason, it's discrimination.
Save application, correspondence, ads, names/dates of interactions. Take photos of property if relevant.
Online at HUD.gov, by phone (800-669-9777), or mail. Free. HUD investigates at no cost to you.
HUD interviews parties, reviews evidence. Can result in settlement, dismissal, or charge of discrimination.
HUD may offer to mediate settlement between parties. You're not required to accept.
If HUD finds cause: Administrative hearing (HUD attorney represents you, free) OR federal court (hire your own lawyer, can get damages + attorney fees).
File a HUD complaint about housing discrimination - free investigation within 100 days
Start by selecting your issue type or describe what happened
DOJ settlement: Facebook's ad algorithm discriminated in housing ads by race, religion, family status. Required algorithm changes + payment. First algorithmic discrimination settlement.
NYC landlord systematically denied Section 8 voucher holders. Settlement: Accept vouchers, pay damages, train staff on fair housing. Largest source-of-income case in NYC history.
Landlord refused to allow wheelchair ramp for disabled tenant. HUD found cause. Administrative law judge awarded $50K damages + ordered ramp installation + fair housing training.
Housing laws vary by jurisdiction, and every discrimination case is unique. Our AI will analyze your specific situation, identify applicable laws, and guide you through the complaint process step-by-step.
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