One week
after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Congress passed the Fair
Housing Act which made it illegal to deny housing based on race, religion, sex,
or nationality.
It was a
landmark achievement for civil rights in American housing at the time, and a
defining moment in the civil rights era.
Unfortunately, however, racial discrimination is far from a thing of the
past.
A recent
investigation by Newsday into housing practices on Long Island revealed
widespread disparate treatment and discrimination by real estate agents against
prospective tenants and homeowners. It was a harsh reminder that there is still
considerable work to be done to achieve the vision expressed by Dr. King and
fellow civil rights activists a half-century ago.
The Real
Estate Board of New York (REBNY) is deeply disturbed by the findings reported
in Newsday and strongly condemns them. Everyone is entitled to equal access and
opportunity when searching for the home of their dreams. It is our
responsibility as industry leaders to ensure that these dreams can become a
reality.
That is
why our organization is committed to doing everything possible to provide each
one of our members with the resources necessary to continue to comply with the
Fair Housing Act (and all Fair Housing laws).
We offer courses on fair housing compliance multiple times a month, and we recently launched a new program called the Core Legal Concepts for the Successful Real Estate Agent. Coursework involves a seven-and-a-half-hour deep dive into key legal issues and will devote three of those to fair housing continuing education. The next session will be held on January 24. We encourage all of our members to register and attend.
A
companion to the class is Fair Housing Fridays – a weekly email fromREBNY’s
Broker Counsel, Neil Garfinkel. Each week we highlight a different area or
question for our members related to fair housing compliance. We also include
compliance regulations in our REBNY Residential Listing Service that
automatically identify and address violations that may be contained in listing
information.
Finally,
we remind all REBNY members that they are required to follow our Code of Ethics
and Professional Practices, which includes required compliance with all
applicable Fair Housing laws. The violation of laws that prohibit
discrimination, harassment, and/or bias is simply not tolerated.
The
passage of the Fair Housing Act remains one of the most important moments in
the history of both our country and our industry. It is a powerful testament to
our ideals, and we must not lose sight of the work necessary to achieve them.
REBNY is committed to providing resources to our members in order to assist
them in complying with all Fair Housing laws and to ensure that everyone in
America, no matter their background, has the chance to live wherever they would
like.
After
all, that’s the American dream.
