Fair Housing Help: Learn Fair Housing Basics

Whether you're starting an apartment search or you already have a rental you call home, it's helpful to get familiar with fair housing law.

Learning about your rights as a tenant will enable you to spot illegal discrimination. Plus, if you believe you've become the victim of a fair housing violation, you'll be prepared by knowing your options for pursuing justice and seeking damages.

Here's a resource I put together recently to help people get familiar with the basics of fair housing law.

Fair Housing Help: Contact Your Local FHEO Office

Each one of the 10 Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) regional offices across the United States is responsible for enforcing the Fair Housing Act and related laws. A part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), FHEO also conducts training, outreach, and compliance monitoring and works with state and local agencies to administer fair housing programs within its geographic jurisdiction.

If you need to contact FHEO about a fair housing claim or other discrimination issue, you can use this table I created to locate your regional office and get contact information.

Fair Housing Help: Identify and Avoid Illegal Steering

Did you know there's a subtle but common form of housing discrimination called "steering"? The term generally refers to situations in which a landlord or other housing professional tries to limit choices by guiding or encouraging prospects to certain apartments, creating unfair, artificial restrictions.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) identifies four main types of illegal steering practices. Here's a summary I put together to help you get familiar with each one.