Article By: Hope Williams, Supervising Attorney, Fair Housing Project, Legal Aid of North Carolina Readers may have heard of the Olmstead case in connection with housing rights for people with disabilities, but they may not know the story behind it, and why it is so important. Olmstead v. L.C., 527 U.S. 581 (1999) was a …
disability
Huntersville, NC Apartment Complex Settles Housing Discrimination Complaint Alleging Disability Discrimination; Compensates Tenant
Legal Aid of North Carolina recently announced it had settled a housing discrimination complaint filed against Belamoor at the Park, LLC, GEM Management, LLC, and an individual property manager on behalf of an individual with a disability with limited mobility. The complaint, filed with the North Carolina Human Relations Commission, alleged that the complainant had …
HUD Announces Voluntary Compliance Agreement with Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, Georgia
HUD announced in November that it had approved a Voluntary Compliance Agreement (VCA) with the Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, Georgia (AHA) resolving findings after a compliance review. The findings by HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) stated that the Housing Authority had failed to comply with Section 504 of …
Court Upholds $5.2 Million Jury Award in Group Home Discrimination Case
On May 27, 2022, a U.S. District Court Judge in Connecticut upheld a jury award of nearly $5.2 million in a housing discrimination case against the Town of Cromwell, Connecticut for engaging in ongoing efforts to shut down a group home operated by Gilead Community Services (Gilead). Gilead has operated for over 50 years, providing …
Assistance Animals under the Fair Housing Act
Disability Discrimination The Fair Housing Act (FHA) prohibits discrimination against individuals who have disabilities or who are associated with people with disabilities. A housing provider that refuses to allow a reasonable accommodation to rules, policies, and practices to allow a person with a disability to use and enjoy their housing may be violating the FHA. …
Office of Inspector General Report: HUD did not have Adequate Policies and Procedures for Ensuring that Public Housing Agencies Properly Processed Tenant Reasonable Accommodation Requests
The Office of Inspector General recently concluded an audit of HUD’s oversight of its public housing agencies’ (PHA) reasonable accommodation policies and procedures. The audit was initiated because of an identified increase over an eleven-year period, from 2009 to 2019, in housing discrimination complaints based on a failure to provide a reasonable accommodation, even as …
HUD to Review Program Policies, Regulations, and Sub-Regulatory Documents to Eliminate Barriers that Unnecessarily Prevent Individuals with Criminal Histories from Participating in HUD Programs
On April 12, 2022, Secretary Fudge issued a Memorandum recognizing that individuals with criminal histories often face barriers to obtaining and maintaining housing, including public housing, HUD-assisted housing, and HUD-insured housing. The Memorandum also recognized that individuals with criminal histories are also disproportionately racial minorities or people with disabilities. As a result, Secretary Fudge issued …
Listen: Deep Dive: Fair Housing
Melissa Harris-Perry and Dorian Warren hosted a Deep Dive segment in April about the Fair Housing Act on NPR’s The Takeaway. The segment covers the history and current state of fair housing in America, including some of the most pressing fair housing issues facing individuals and communities. The show’s featured guests included: Lisa Rice, President and …
Upcoming Fair Housing Trainings!
The Fair Housing Project of Legal Aid of North Carolina is pleased to announce free basic and advanced virtual fair housing trainings, in partnership with the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency. Register for specific trainings using the links below. Basic Fair Housing Trainings – For Advocates and Service Providers Trainings will provide an overview of …
United States Department of Justice Notice to Public
On October 18, 2021, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina entered a Consent Order resolving a housing discrimination lawsuit brought by the United States against the owners and developers of forty-six apartment…Read More