Fair Housing laws protect you from discrimination by landlords, managers, agents, owners, and neighbors.

Federal Law

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in any housing transaction on the basis of race, color, sex, family status, religion, national origin or mental or physical disability.

Oregon Law

In addition to the above, Oregon's fair housing laws prohibit discrimination on the basis of marital status, sexual orientation, or source of income (provided the source is not illegal or criminal). (659A.421)

Note:  Landlords may, however, reject a couple who are unmarried, unrelated, and of the opposite sex if the rental requires the use of a common bath or bedroom. (659A.421(6))

Many cities and counties included further protections. For example, in addition to the federal and state fair housing protections listed above, it is also illegal to discriminate because of your age over 18 in Multnomah County, Benton County, Beaverton, Bend, Corvallis, Eugene, Hillsboro, Lincoln City, Portland, Salem and Springfield. The Fair Housing Council of Oregon maintains a useful chart of such fair housing protections at http://fhco.org/pdf/Protected%20classes%20spreadsheet-OR.pdf

The fair housing laws exist to prevent the unfair treatment of protected classes by landlords. Fair landlords apply the same criteria when screening and working with all types of tenants. For example, a family with children that does not meet the minimum income level set by a landlord for all applicants would not be discriminated against if the landlord denied the application.

Tenants With Disabilities

A “disability” is a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of a person’s functions, such as caring for oneself, doing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and/or working.

It is illegal to discriminate based on mental or physical disabilities. It is also illegal to discriminate against people with disabilities because they have a hearing-ear dog or seeing-eye dog or other assistance animal, or to charge an additional non-refundable fee or deposit for the animal. (346.690).

These protections also make it illegal to discriminate because a person is afflicted with AIDS or HIV.

Note:  Landlords may not disclose if an occupant or former occupant is infected with or has died from AIDS or HIV.

Other state and federal laws expand the rights of tenants with disabilities so that landlords must make “reasonable” accommodations in rules, policies, practices, and services as necessary to allow a person with a disability equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling. (Civil Rights of Disabled People, (659A.145) and the Federal Fair Housing Act, (42 U.S.C. 3601 et. seq.))

Landlords must also permit reasonable modifications to the premises, at the tenant’s expense, to make the dwelling usable for the tenant. The tenant may be required to restore the premises to their original condition at the end of the tenancy only if it is reasonable to do so. For example, a wheelchair ramp may have to be removed, but widened doors would not have to be narrowed.

Although federal regulations forbid requiring a deposit to make these changes, they permit the landlord to require the tenant to open an “escrow” account, with interest going to the tenant, to ensure that there are funds to pay for the removal of any modifications at the end of the tenancy.

Note:  These protections do not protect a person who currently uses illegal or controlled drugs, or who has been convicted for the illegal distribution or manufacture of drugs. They do, however, protect those who are recovering from an addiction. Landlords should use the same criteria that they use on all other applicants concerning threats to the health, safety, or property of the premises and occupants.

Right to Privacy

Applicants do not have to disclose their type of disability unless they are seeking housing specifically intended for people with disabilities. Landlords are not entitled to ask for or find out details of the specific disability of an applicant or tenant.

Familial Status

The same state and federal laws prohibit discrimination of families with children (e.g. because the tenant has a child, has or is securing legal custody of a child, or is pregnant). A child is a person under 18 years of age.

Renting to Minors

State law says that a contract with someone under 18 is legal and binding only in the area of housing and utilities. It is not required by law, but landlords may choose to rent to certain minors, defined as someone who is:

• an unemancipated and unmarried person living apart from their parents or legal guardians;
• 16 or 17;
• Under 16 and the parent in physical custody of a child(ren);
• Under 16 and pregnant with a child who will be living in their physical custody.

Minors should be held to the same screening, application, and responsibility standards as all other applicants and tenants.

Senior Housing

An exception to the protection for familial status allows landlords to have “older person housing,” which is:

1. publicly funded for elderly persons as defined in the state or federal programs;
2. intended for and solely occupied by persons 62 or older; or
3. intended and operated for occupancy by households including at least one person 55 or older, but only if:

• at least 80 percent of the units are occupied by at least one person 55 or older, and

• the owner has published and adhered to policies and procedures which show an intent to provide housing for persons 55 or older.

Federal law excludes “mom and pop” landlords from the familial status protections, although state law does not. “Mom and pop” landlords are defined as those who occasionally rent a single family home, or nothing larger than a 4 unit building. They must also live in one of the units.

Victims of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking

A landlord may not discriminate against an applicant or tenant because they are, or have been, a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.  This kind of discrimination includes evicting a tenant, failing to renew or refusing to enter into a rental agreement, and imposing different rules or standards, or selectively enforcing rules or standards against victims. (90.449 (1) and (2))

Additionally, if a tenant commits a criminal act of physical violence related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking against another household member who is also a tenant, the landlord may:

• evict the perpetrator on 24 hours notice but may not evict the other tenants. (see Eviction and other Landlord Remedies)
• get a court order to remove the perpetrator without removing the other tenants, if the perpetrator remains on the premises after the notice expires. (90.445(1))

However, the landlord may not require the remaining tenants to pay additional rent, fees, or deposits based on the absence of the perpetrator. (90.445(2))

If your landlord discriminates against you based on these criteria and in the ways outlined above, you may be entitled to up to two months rent or twice the actual damages.  (90.449(3)(b)

Note: If you successfully defend against an eviction based on this kind of discrimination, you may not be entitled to attorney's fees if the landlord:

• did not know, or have reasonable cause to know, that that the reason for the eviction notice was related to domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking
• promptly excluded anyone except the perpetrator from the eviction upon becoming aware that the reason for the eviction was related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. (90.449(5))

Identifying Discrimination

Much discrimination happens without the victim having the slightest suspicion that discrimination has occurred. Examples of illegal discrimination may include:

• saying that there is no vacancy when there is one;
• requiring a credit check or charging a higher rent or deposit only for members of a protected class (minorities, families, disabled, etc.);
• trying to discourage a member of a protected class in any way (e.g. saying “There are no other people of color here; you may feel more comfortable somewhere else”); or
• any other distinction in the terms or conditions of the rental.

What to Do

If you feel you have been discriminated against, you should report it. Depending on the type of discrimination, there are several ways to seek help.

The Oregon Fair Housing Council can provide additional assistance and may set up a test to determine if discrimination is actually happening. In Oregon, contact the Civil Rights Division of the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries. See Appendix B for contact information.

In addition, some municipalities have their own process for redressing complaints about discrimination. Check your local city code for more information.

You can also seek legal assistance and file complaints in federal or state courts. Even if you don’t have proof, file a complaint, especially if you feel you have been discriminated against during the application process. Quick action may result in preventing the landlord from renting the unit to someone else until your case is resolved.