Articles

In last week’s post, we reviewed some statistics on housing discrimination complaints filed in 2017. One positive note from that review was that landlords are rarely found to have committed acts of housing discrimination. This week, I want to look at some cases across the country that shed light on some important topics in Fair Housing. One of several lessons from this week’s review: while housing discrimination might be rare, it can be very costly for landlords. Here are four cases that illustrate that point and give us lessons to consider: Case #1 - Fair Housing Center of West Michigan...

Every year, the National Fair Housing Alliance issues a report on Fair Housing Trends from the prior year. The report reviews the most recent data on claims of housing discrimination across the country. In April 2018, the NFHA’s 2018 Fair Housing Trends Report was released. You can read the full report using this link. Here are the highlights: I’m always most interested in two things in the report: (1) statistics on housing discrimination claims and (2) important housing discrimination cases. Today, I’m just going to review the statistical data regarding the housing discrimination complaints filed in 2017. 2017 Housing Discrimination...

In 2018, Kentucky joined a growing list of states that have passed laws addressing fraudulent conduct by tenants and others attempting to get an Assistance Animal. KRS 383.085 makes it a criminal offense for any person to knowingly provide false information or documents in an attempt to get an Assistance Animal in housing. Check out this post to find out the details on Kentucky's version of the law.

Almost everyone in the rental industry has dealt with a tenant that, for whatever reason, they do not want to return to the property. Unfortunately, banning someone from your property is not as simple as telling them not to come back. Unless your lease restricts who your tenants are allowed to invite to the property as guests, then your current tenants may still invite a former tenant to come to the property as their guest, and you would violate the contract by trying to exclude that guest. Check out the video below for tips on how to deal with this...

It's often confusing for landlords to figure out when a tenant has abandoned or surrendered a rental unit and when they need to go through the eviction process. This video gives some ideas on how to best deal with the confusion. Enjoy! Here's the summary on abandonment: The safest move is always to go through the eviction process unless the tenant returns keys or gives you a written statement that you can take possession of the property. That said, when there are enough indicators that the tenant has abandoned the property, you may choose to take possession without going through...