The federal Fair Housing Act, Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, was planned to safeguard the buyer/renter of a residence from seller/landlord discrimination. The law was the result of a civil liberties project versus housing discrimination in the United States. It was authorized, at the urging of President Lyndon B. Johnson, just one week after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

. The Act is implemented by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
HUD takes a look at complaints of housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, impairment, or familial status. At no expense to you, HUD will check out the grievance and try to resolve the matter with both celebrations. The process to file a complaint is covered listed below.
NOTE: If you desire to find out more about your rights as an occupant in Kansas, read this Kansas Tenant Handbook. It was initially published by the Kansas firm Housing and Credit Counseling, Inc. (HCCI), which helps people in Kansas with a range of customer problems.
Here is a video to show how the Fair Housing Act protects you from discrimination on the basis of LGBTQ status.
This video speak about discrimination in Idaho, but it likewise uses to Kansas and other states too. If you feel you have been a victim of housing discrimination due to the fact that of LGBTQ status, you can make an application for support from KLS online or call the application line at 316-267-3975. Or you can learn how to submit a complaint straight with HUD by going here.
What Housing Is Covered?
The Fair Housing Act covers most housing In many cases, the Act excuses owner-occupied buildings without any more than 4 systems, single-family housing sold or leased without a broker, and housing run by companies and personal clubs that restrict occupancy to members.
What Is Prohibited?
In the Sale and Rental of Housing: No one may take any of the following actions based upon race, color, national origin, faith, sex, familial status or handicap:
- Refuse to rent or offer housing
- Refuse to imagine housing.
- Make housing unavailable
- Deny a dwelling
- Set various terms, conditions or privileges for sale or leasing of a dwelling
- Provide various housing services or facilities
- Falsely reject that housing is open for assessment, sale, or rental
- For profit, encourage owners to sell or lease (blockbusting) or
- Deny anybody access to or membership in a center or service (such as a numerous listing service) related to the sale or leasing of housing.
In Mortgage Lending: No one may take any of the following actions based upon race, color, national origin, religious beliefs, sex, familial status or handicap (impairment):
- Refuse to make a mortgage loan
- Refuse to provide information about loans
- Impose different terms or conditions on a loan, such as various rate of interest, points, or charges
- Discriminate in appraising residential or commercial property
- Refuse to purchase a loan or
- Set different terms or conditions for acquiring a loan.
In Addition: It is illegal for anybody to:
- Threaten, push, bully or disrupt anybody using a reasonable housing right or helping others who work out that right
- Advertise or make any declaration that indicates a cap or preference based on race, color, nationwide origin, religious beliefs, sex, familial status, or handicap. This bar against prejudiced marketing applies to single-family and owner-occupied housing that is otherwise exempt from the Fair Housing Act.
Additional Protection if You Have an Impairment
If you or somebody gotten in touch with you:
- Have a physical or mental impairment (including hearing, mobility and visual impairments, chronic alcohol addiction, chronic psychological illness, AIDS, AIDS Related Complex and psychological retardation) that considerably restricts one or more significant life activities
- Have a record of such an impairment or
- Are considered having such a special needs

Your landlord may not:
- Refuse to let you make realistic changes to your house or common usage locations, at your expense, if required for the disabled individual to utilize the housing. (Where rational, the landlord may allow changes just if you accept bring back the residential or commercial property to its initial condition when you move.).
- Refuse to make reasonable variations in rules, policies, practices or services if required for the handicapped individual to utilize the housing.
Example: A structure with a 'no pets' policy need to enable an aesthetically impaired tenant to keep a guide pet dog.
Example: Let's state an apartment complex uses tenants sufficient, unassigned parking. They must honor a quote from a mobility-impaired renter for a reserved space near her house if it is required to assure that she can have access to her apartment or condo.
However, housing need not be made vacant to an individual who is a direct risk to the health or safety of others or who now utilizes prohibited drugs.
Requirements for New Buildings
In structures that were ready for first usage after March 13, 1991, and have an elevator and 4 or more units:
- Public and typical areas need to be useful to persons with specials needs.
- Doors and corridors must be large enough for wheelchairs.
- All systems need to have: - An accessible route into and through the system.
- Handy light switches, electrical outlets, thermostats and other ecological controls.
- Reinforced restroom walls to enable later on fitting of grab bars and.
- Kitchens and bathrooms that can be used by people in wheelchairs.
If a structure with 4 or more systems has no elevator and were prepared for first use after March 13, 1991, these requirements use to ground flooring units.
These must-haves for brand-new buildings do not change any more strict standards in State or local law.
Housing Opportunities for Families
Unless a structure or neighborhood makes the grade as housing for older individuals, it may not discriminate based on familial status. That is, it may not victimize households in which one or more children under 18 live with:
- A moms and dad.
- An individual who has legal custody of the kid or kids or.
- The designee of the moms and dad or legal custodian, with the parent or custodian's composed approval.
Familial status protection likewise applies to pregnant females and anybody securing legal custody of a kid under 18.
Exemption: Housing for older individuals is exempt from the ban against familial status discrimination if:
- The HUD Secretary has actually decided that it is specifically developed for and inhabited by senior persons under a Federal, State or city government program or.
- It is occupied solely by persons who are 62 or older or.
- It houses a minimum of one person who is 55 or older in a minimum of 80 percent of the occupied units. It should also follow a policy that shows an intent to house individuals who are 55 or older.
A transition duration allows locals on or before September 13, 1988, to continue living in the housing, no matter their age, without interfering with the exemption.

If you believe your rights have been violated ... The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a Kansas or regional reasonable housing company is prepared to help you file a grievance, or you can obtain legal support from KLS online or call the application line at 1-800-723-6953. Browse the web to HUD to learn how to file a complaint.
What to Tell HUD
- Your name and address.
- The name and address of the person your problem is against (the participant).
- The address or other description of the housing involved.
- A brief description of the alleged infraction (the occasion that caused you to think your rights were violated).
- The date of the alleged violation
Where to Write or Call:
Send a letter to the reasonable housing office nearest you, or if you want, you may call that workplace directly.
Great Plains Office-- Fair Housing Hub
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,
Gateway Tower II, 400 State Avenue, Room 200, 4th Floor,
Kansas City, KS 66101-2406
Telephone (913) 551-6958 or 1-800-743-5323
Fax (913) 551-6856

TTY (913) 551-6972
E-mail: Complaints_office_07@hud.gov!.?.! Have a look at our pages on Resolving legal
barriers to work and housing and Facts about record expungement in Kansas. Check out Tenant issues and rights for Kansas renters Plain text -No HTML tags permitted.- Lines and paragraphs break instantly.- Websites addresses and e-mail addresses develop into links immediately.