Fair Housing Deep Dive: The Impact of Disparate Impact Theory on Fair Housing Compliance

If you’ve been in the multifamily business for a while, you’ve no doubt heard this mantra when you attended your annual fair housing refresher course: “Treat everyone the same, treat everyone the SAME, treat EVERYONE the SAME!” While it was never good advice, with the advent of Disparate Impact, it is now dangerous advice and the express lane to a fair housing complaint or lawsuit.

No longer are neutral policies automatically safe, and no longer can we deny occupancy to anyone with a felony conviction, or, in many areas, deny consideration to an applicant based solely on their source of income. The list of policies and practices affected by the application of Disparate Impact Theory continues to grow and as is the case with any compliance issues, ignorance is no excuse.

In this session we’ll look at the differences between the two types of discrimination – discrimination due to difference treatment and discrimination due to disparate impact – and what policies and practices are affected. We’ll take a close look at criminal background checks, source of income – especially Section 8 vouchers, victims of domestic violence, limited English proficiency, occupancy standards and even some time-honored qualifying standards such as credit and employment history. We’ll explore the HUD three-step process used to evaluate disparate impact claims and we’ll review strategies to minimize the possibility of non-compliance. Finally, we’ll look at the importance of training everyone, regardless of their position or title, about fair housing compliance and especially those areas most often identified in disparate impact complaints.

Webinar Objectives

• Recognize the importance of identifying situations where discrimination due to disparate impact might occur.
• Formulate and execute strategies to minimize the possibility of doing or saying something that could be characterized as discrimination due to disparate impact.
• Prepare strategies to manage potential expansion of disparate impact theory as an important element of fair housing compliance.

Webinar Highlights

• Types of discrimination
• Difference between the two types of discrimination
• Why “treat everyone the same” is a fast track to a disparate impact complaint.
• Where disparate impact typically occurs, and which protected classes experience discrimination.
• The three-step process HUD uses when discrimination due to disparate impact is alleged to have occurred.
• How to train for fair housing compliance with regard to discrimination due to disparate impact.

Who Should Attend

Community Managers, Multi-site Managers (Area, Regional), Mid-level Management Company Executives, Training and Development Professionals, Marketing Professionals.