Fair Housing Questions and Answers
Thursday, March 26th, 2009Q. Are race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status and handicap the only protected classes?
A. These seven categories are the only protected classes under the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988. However, many state and local governments often have their own laws and ordinances making housing discrimination illegal, and may include categories in addition to the ones protected by the federal law. For instance, a city’s ordinance may prohibit discrimination on the basis of marital status. If you refused to rent an apartment to two people of the opposite sex who are not married, but will rent to two people of the opposite sex as long as they are married, you have not violated the federal Fair Housing Act, but the city could take action against you for a violation of the local fair housing ordinance. Besides marital status, other categories sometimes protected by local ordinance or state law include: sexual orientation, source of income, and age. Occasionally, an additional category may be added based on a particular local condition. For example, Cincinnati’s ordinance protects people of Appalachian heritage from discrimination, while Denver’s includes military status as a protected class. If everyone is treated fairly and consistently, there should be no need to be overly concerned with the particular protected groups of a locality.
