When purchasing a home in Arizona, you’ll encounter numerous documents throughout the transaction process. Among these, the Fair Housing Advisory might seem like just another form requiring your signature. However, this document addresses fundamental rights that protect you and all other homebuyers from discrimination during the home buying process.
This comprehensive guide will explain the Arizona Fair Housing Advisory, why it exists, what protections it outlines, and how these protections affect your home buying experience. Understanding these rights ensures you can recognize and respond appropriately if you encounter discrimination in the housing market.
The Arizona Fair Housing Advisory is a one-page document created by the Arizona Association of REALTORS® that informs buyers, sellers, landlords, and tenants about federal and state fair housing laws. Updated as of February 2023, this advisory serves as an educational tool that:
While the advisory itself doesn’t create new legal rights or obligations, it summarizes existing fair housing laws and ensures all parties in real estate transactions are aware of these important protections.
The Fair Housing Advisory references several key laws that collectively form the foundation of housing anti-discrimination protections:
Enacted in 1968 and amended several times since, the Federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on:
Arizona state laws mirror and supplement federal protections, ensuring consistent anti-discrimination standards throughout the state.
Beyond legal requirements, REALTORS® are bound by a professional Code of Ethics that explicitly prohibits discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics. This professional standard adds another layer of protection for homebuyers.
The Fair Housing Advisory clearly states that it is “illegal under the Federal Fair Housing Act and Arizona Fair Housing laws” to discriminate based on certain protected characteristics. These protected classes define the groups that receive specific protection under fair housing laws:
These protections prevent discrimination based on a person’s race or skin color. Examples include:
This protection covers discrimination based on a person’s birthplace, ancestry, culture, or language. Examples include:
Fair housing laws prohibit discrimination based on religious beliefs or practices. Examples include:
Recent interpretations of the Fair Housing Act (and explicitly stated in the Arizona advisory) include protection against discrimination based on:
Examples include steering LGBTQ+ buyers away from certain neighborhoods or making assumptions about housing preferences based on gender identity.
This protection covers families with children under 18, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children. Examples of prohibited actions include:
These protections cover individuals with physical or mental disabilities. Examples include:
The Fair Housing Advisory outlines specific actions that constitute illegal discrimination. Understanding these prohibitions helps you recognize potential violations during your home search:
It’s illegal for sellers, landlords, or real estate professionals to:
Example: A seller takes their home off the market when they learn the interested buyer is of a particular religion.
Housing providers cannot set different terms, conditions, or privileges for sale or rental of housing, including:
Example: A lender requires higher down payments from single mothers than from other applicants with similar financial profiles.
Making, printing, or publishing any statement or advertisement that indicates preferences, limitations, or discrimination violates fair housing laws.
Example: A property listing that states “perfect for professional couples” could be interpreted as discriminating against families with children.
Applying different standards or procedures in the application process based on protected characteristics is prohibited.
Example: Requiring additional financial documentation from buyers of certain national origins.
Restricting access to services, privileges, or facilities associated with housing based on protected characteristics is illegal.
Example: A homeowners association that allows only residents of certain religions to use community amenities.
Housing providers must allow reasonable accommodations for disabilities, including:
Example: Refusing to allow a buyer with mobility impairments to install a ramp at their own expense.
One particularly subtle form of discrimination highlighted in the advisory is “steering,” which occurs when real estate professionals guide buyers toward or away from certain neighborhoods based on protected characteristics.
Example: A real estate agent only shows properties in predominantly Hispanic neighborhoods to Hispanic homebuyers, regardless of their stated preferences.
This practice involves persuading homeowners to sell their properties by suggesting that people of a particular protected characteristic are moving into the neighborhood, potentially causing property values to decline.
Example: A real estate agent tells homeowners, “You should sell now because this neighborhood is changing, and property values will fall.”
Fair housing laws ensure that as a homebuyer, you have the right to:
You should be shown all available properties that meet your criteria, regardless of your race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability.
Lenders, sellers, and real estate professionals should apply the same standards and processes to all applicants.
Real estate professionals should show you properties based solely on your specified preferences and requirements, not based on assumptions about where you “belong” or would “fit in.”
If you have a disability, you have the right to reasonable accommodations throughout the buying process and the right to make reasonable modifications to your new home.
Real estate professionals should provide objective information about neighborhoods, schools, and amenities without reference to the demographic composition of areas.
During your home search, be alert to potential signs of discrimination, which might include:
If you believe you’ve encountered housing discrimination, the Fair Housing Advisory outlines several avenues for filing complaints:
The advisory provides a link to file complaints with the Arizona Attorney General’s Civil Rights Division, which investigates housing discrimination claims under both state and federal law.
You can file a federal complaint with HUD, which enforces the Fair Housing Act nationwide.
If the discrimination involves a REALTOR®, you can file an ethics complaint with the Arizona REALTORS® association, which enforces its Code of Ethics.
The advisory provides website links for filing complaints with each of these entities. When filing a complaint, you should:
While the Fair Housing Advisory provides an excellent overview of basic protections, there are additional considerations that can affect your home buying experience:
Research has shown that homes in minority neighborhoods are sometimes appraised at lower values than comparable homes in predominantly white neighborhoods. This can affect financing and ultimately perpetuate housing segregation. Be aware of:
As home searching increasingly moves online, new forms of potential discrimination have emerged:
While these issues are still evolving legally, be aware that fair housing protections extend to digital environments.
Discrimination based on accent, language ability, or perceived national origin over the phone or in digital communications is prohibited. If you experience a change in treatment after speaking with someone who previously only communicated with you in writing, this could indicate linguistic profiling.
Some buyers face discrimination based on multiple protected characteristics simultaneously. For example, a disabled Hispanic woman might face compounded discrimination based on disability, national origin, and sex. Fair housing laws protect against this combined or “intersectional” discrimination as well.
To better understand how fair housing protections work in practice, consider these scenarios:
Situation: Jordan and Kim are an interracial couple searching for their first home. Their real estate agent consistently shows them properties only in racially diverse neighborhoods, despite their stated interest in several predominantly white communities within their price range.
Fair Housing Implication: This could constitute illegal steering based on race. The agent is limiting the couple’s options based on assumptions about where they would be “comfortable” or “welcome.”
Appropriate Response: Jordan and Kim should directly express interest in seeing properties in the specific neighborhoods they’ve mentioned. If the agent continues to avoid showing properties in those areas, they may have grounds for a fair housing complaint.
Situation: Alex, a single father with two young children, notices that his loan officer becomes noticeably less enthusiastic after learning about his family situation. The loan officer suggests he might want to consider a “more stable housing situation” before buying.
Fair Housing Implication: This could constitute discrimination based on familial status. Single parents with children are protected under fair housing laws.
Appropriate Response: Alex should focus the conversation on his financial qualifications. If he experiences a denial or less favorable terms that cannot be explained by objective financial criteria, he might have grounds for a fair housing complaint.
Situation: Maria uses a service animal for her anxiety disorder. When submitting an offer on a condominium, the seller expresses concern about the condo association’s “no pets” policy.
Fair Housing Implication: Service animals and emotional support animals are not considered “pets” under fair housing laws. Maria has the right to a reasonable accommodation for her disability.
Appropriate Response: Maria’s agent should explain to the seller’s agent that service animals are protected under fair housing laws and that the condo association must make a reasonable accommodation regardless of their pet policy.
The Arizona Fair Housing Advisory serves as an important reminder that equal access to housing is a fundamental right protected by law. As a homebuyer, understanding these protections empowers you to:
The advisory’s requirement for acknowledgment ensures that all parties in Arizona real estate transactions are aware of these important protections. By signing it, you’re not just completing another piece of paperwork—you’re affirming the principles of fairness and equal opportunity that are essential to the integrity of the housing market.
Remember that fair housing is not just a legal requirement but a continuous commitment to creating communities where everyone has equal access to housing opportunities regardless of their background or characteristics. By understanding your rights and the protections available to you, you help ensure that the home buying process remains fair and accessible for all.
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