Last week we blogged about women landlords, so this week we are looking at women as tenants. There are particular challenges that can arise for female renters, including discrimination and harassment. Read on to learn more about your rights and resources, should you encounter these issues…
Discrimination against survivors of domestic violence is a
prevalent issue in the US. Despite the fact that survivors are not considered a
protected class under the Fair Housing Act, such discrimination can violate
fair housing laws, particularly if it results in disparate impact on women, who
constitute the majority of survivors. Survivors of domestic violence often face
eviction under zero-tolerance crime policies, which can punish them for the
violence inflicted upon them. In some cases, women are evicted due to property
damage caused by their abusers. Additionally, discriminatory policies based on
gender stereotypes, such as eviction of women with a history of domestic
violence, can also violate the FHA.
Furthermore, many local laws that penalize landlords and tenants when police are called too many times to the premises within a time period, often referred to as nuisance ordinances, can also harm and punish domestic violence survivors who seek help from the police for the abuse committed against them. These laws can label a property as a nuisance when it is the site of a certain number of calls for police or alleged nuisance conduct, which can include assault, harassment, stalking, disorderly conduct, and many other kinds of behavior. Upon citation, property owners typically are instructed to "abate the nuisance" or face steep penalties. Many landlords respond by evicting the tenant, refusing to renew their lease, or instructing tenants not to call 911.
Nuisance ordinances can have a disparate impact on survivors of domestic violence, who may feel they must endure violence and threats without police intervention when calling the police will lead to homelessness. They have also been found to disproportionately impact and be disparately enforced against communities of color and persons with mental disabilities. Because these ordinances typically do not require that residents be told about a warning or citation, impacted people often have no opportunity to show that they were actually victims of the "nuisance conduct" and may not even know that a nuisance ordinance is at the root of their housing situation. Nuisance ordinances have been found to violate the First Amendment right to petition the government, due process guarantees, and federal and state prohibitions against housing discrimination. See the ACLU’s “I Am Not A Nuisance” website for more information.
In 2013, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act was passed to address this issue. It provides protections for victims of domestic violence who reside in federally subsidized housing, including the right to emergency transfers and the ability to break a lease early without penalty if the tenant reasonably believes they are in imminent danger of further violence. The act also requires housing providers to adopt a model emergency transfer plan, to train employees on how to respond to domestic violence, and to make reasonable accommodations for survivors with disabilities.
Sexual Harassment is also an issue facing female tenants. Women of color, particularly those who are poor, are at the greatest risk of experiencing housing-based sexual harassment. However, many of them are hesitant to accuse their landlords, who have immense power over their lives.
According to Rigel Oliveri, a University of Missouri Law School professor and author of a 2018 study on the issue, these women often feel ashamed of their financial situation and think they are bad tenants, causing them to tolerate the harassment.
Fortunately, this trend is starting to change. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) received 246 housing-related sexual harassment complaints in 2019, which is more than double the 103 complaints received in 2017.
The National Alliance for Fair Housing's recent report states that "increased scrutiny of sexual harassment in housing has led to an unprecedented number of cases against housing providers." The report also notes that in 2018, the Justice Department filed six lawsuits alleging a broad "pattern or practice" of housing-based sexual harassment, more than in any previous year.
The #MeToo movement may have contributed to the increase in complaints. However, HUD credits a joint anti-harassment initiative it launched in 2018 with the Department of Justice for the positive trend. The initiative aims to raise public awareness of the issue and make it easier for victims to come forward.
Anna Maria Farías, HUD assistant secretary for the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, revealed that women told them that they never knew they had a right to file a complaint.
Under the joint initiative, HUD and the Justice Department are sharing sexual harassment data and training programs for staff. HUD has also released a video featuring three women who've experienced sexual harassment from a landlord or property manager.
Under federal law, if HUD discovers that a landlord is violating fair housing laws, the agency can put his property into receivership to prevent him from having contact with tenants. According to Farías, "That's when people realize we mean business. There's a price to pay."