WASHINGTON – May 21, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it has negotiatedanagreement between the National Fair Housing Alliance, the Austin Tenants’ Council, the National Association of the Deaf,and Bell Partners, a Greensboro, NC-based apartment owner and operator that controls more than 64,000 homes in 15 states, settling allegations that the company’s properties in Texas and Georgia denied housing to deaf persons.
The Fair Housing Act makes it unlawful to refuse to rent, make housing unavailable or discriminate in the terms, conditions, or privileges associated with the rental of a dwelling on the basis of disability. This includes refusing to rent to persons who are deaf or hard of hearing.
The three advocacy organizations alleged that Bell Partners discriminated against rental applicants who were deaf or hard of hearing based on a series of fair housing tests that the groups performed in Savannah, Georgia, and Austin, Texas, in 2013. Testers posing as rental applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing called to inquire about apartments using the Internet Protocol (IP) Relay system, which allows deaf or hard of hearing individuals to communicate with hearing persons via phone using computer text. Multiple tests were conducted over a period of several months. Agents of Bell Partners allegedly hung up on testers who used the IP Relay system or sent their calls directly to voice mail; in contrast, agents accepted calls from testers not using the IP Relay system. When agents spoke with testers using the IP Relay system, they allegedly quoted higher rental prices and failed to offer the same specials and amenities they offered to testers who did not use the IP Relay system. Agents also allegedly failed to follow up with testers who used the IP Relay system.
“Testing exposes housing discrimination that might otherwise go undetected,” said Dave Ziaya, HUD’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “The Fair Housing Act protects all potential renters, including those who are deaf or hard of hearing. HUD will continue to enforce the law to ensure that no one is denied housing because they havea disability.”
Under the terms of the agreements, Bell Partners will pay $175,000 to the National Fair Housing Alliance, including $25,000 in attorneys’ fees. Bell Partners will provide fair housing training to both newly-hired and current employees. The training will cover the use of assistive technology for the deaf and hard of hearing, including telecommunications relay services. Additionally, Bell Partners will adopt a written policy addressing equal access to housing opportunities for applicants with disabilities, including deaf and hard of hearing individuals, which outlines the correct handling of telecommunications relay calls and other types of communications with deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Bell Partners will communicate the policy to all agents and managers. Bell Partners will pay the National Association of the Deaf $15,000 for consulting services in the development of these policies.
The Bell Partners agreement follows another settlement HUD reached on behalf of deaf and hard of hearing individuals earlier this year. In February, HUD reached an agreement with Mercy House Living Centers in Santa Ana, CA, settling allegations that the center’s employees discriminated against two deaf and hard of hearing Section 8 applicants when they refused a request for an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter. Under that agreement, Mercy House Living Centers agreed to pay the applicants $17,500 to cover the amount of rent they paid during the seven months that they were unable to participate in the Shelter+Care Program, provide ASL interpreters and other accommodations when necessary to communicate with persons with disabilities, and provide fair housing training for its employees.
HUD also released a Video Series for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing produced in collaboration with the National Fair Housing Alliance, Disability independence Group and Sweetwater Media. The 12 videos are in American Sign Language (ASL) with English captioning and they provide legal and practical fair housing information in a format accessible to persons who are Deaf and/or Hard of Hearing. The videos illustratecommon problems faced by persons in the buying, renting, and use of a home. HUD also has an ongoing series of print PSAs in English and Spanish that address housing discrimination faced by those who are deaf or hard of hearing.
If you believe your civil rights have been violatedin buying or renting a home or apartment, you can report it online at www.hud.gov/fairhousing, call 1-800-669-9777, TTY 1-800-927-9275 or by downloading HUD’s free housing discrimination mobile application, which can be accessed through Apple devices, such as the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.
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HUD’s mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.
HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and transform the way HUD does business.
More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and
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Contact:
Elena Gaona
(202) 708-0685
http://www.hud.gov/news/index.cfm
