Less Than One Percent of Illegal Housing Discrimination Reported, According to New Report by National Fair Housing Alliance

4/16/2003

From: Shanna Smith, 202-898-1661 Talia Inbar, 202-320-8790 or 703-519-4929 both for the National Fair Housing Alliance

WASHINGTON, April 16 -- The National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA), the nation's leading civil rights organization focused on promoting fair housing, today released its annual "Fair Housing Trends Report," which collects data on reported acts of illegal discrimination nationwide.

The 2003 report reveals that the highest levels of housing discrimination complaints filed in 2002 were from African Americans and people with disabilities. Race was the most commonly reported basis for housing discrimination (30 percent of all complaints), followed by disability and familial status (27 percent and 15 percent of all complaints, respectively). Complaints based on national origin discrimination comprise the next highest category of discrimination (12 percent). A total of 25,246 complaints were filed nationwide in 2002.

"This number is less than one percent of the estimated incidence of illegal housing discrimination that occurs each year in the United States," said Shanna Smith, president of the National Fair Housing Alliance. "Thirty five years after the passage of the Fair Housing Act, discrimination persists virtually unchallenged. These low complaint levels signal a need for increased fair housing enforcement by the current administration."

In 1980, HUD estimated that at least two million instances of rental and sales discrimination against African American home seekers occurred annually. This estimate was based on data from HUD's national housing discrimination survey.

"Since that report was issued, the Fair Housing Act was amended to provide protection to families with children and people with disabilities, in addition to prior protections based on race, color, religion, national origin and sex," explained Smith. "If HUD projected the incidence of discrimination faced by African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, families with children and people with disabilities, the number would be far greater than two million."

The 2003 Fair Housing Trends Report is based on 2002 complaint data compiled from 91 private, nonprofit fair housing agencies throughout the nation, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and 95 Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) agencies which are state and local government agencies whose laws are substantially equivalent to the federal Fair Housing Act.

Total Complaints Agency.....Claims/Complaints.......1999.......2001.......2002 NFHA.......Complaints.............15,131.....16,500....17,543 FHAP.......Claims and Complaints...4,971......5,041.....5,129 HUD........Claims and Complaints...1,988......1,902.....2,511 DOJ........Claims and Complaints......49.........64........63 Totals............................22,139.....23,507....25,246

Recent research documents the fact that many consumers do not know their rights and that those who do are unlikely to file complaints. A HUD study released in 2002, "How Much Do We Know? Public Awareness of the Nation's Fair Housing Laws," found that one in every five people who believed they experienced housing discrimination did not know what their rights were and where to complain.

Another recent study documented the fact that, for those who do know their rights and where to complain, they are unlikely to do so because they lack confidence in the enforcement system. This 2001 George Washington University study of segregation in Washington, DC, found that, "Out of the 10.9 percent of blacks who reported that they experienced discrimination within the housing market, more than 90 percent did not take legal action, and one of the key reasons for not doing so was because they thought that nothing would come of it."

"I came to America with dreams of equality and freedom and of moving forward. This makes me feel like we are all moving backward," said Joseph Ngangum, of Takoma Park, Md., who recently filed a housing discrimination based on race. "I hope that by telling my story I am making a difference and that others will not have to face this kind of discrimination. It hurts. It makes you feel like you are not a person-that if you are black you do not deserve a home. It has to stop."

"Successful enforcement builds trust with the people who are victimized by housing discrimination. Private fair housing groups receive more complaints than all government agencies combined because fair housing centers investigate complaints quickly and secure units, damages and affirmative relief in a timely fashion. But the success of the private fair housing movement is in jeopardy," stated Ms. Smith. "HUD is only proposing $12 million for enforcement grants for FY2004. This means that only 44 fair housing groups can be funded under a cap of $275,000 per grant. At a minimum, HUD should use for enforcement at least $18 million of the $20 million it is requesting from Congress. However, if HUD was truly serious about fair housing enforcement, it would seek a substantial increase in FHIP funding in the same way it has secured increased funding for FHAP agencies," Smith concluded.

About the National Fair Housing Alliance (http://www.nationalfairhousing.org) Founded in 1988, the National Fair Housing Alliance is a consortium of more than 100 private, non-profit fair housing organizations, state and local civil rights groups, and individuals from 37 states and the District of Columbia. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., NFHA, through comprehensive education, advocacy and enforcement programs, provides equal access to apartments, houses, mortgage loans and insurance policies for millions of people. NFHA pioneered cooperative agreements with several of the country's largest insurance companies, including State Farm, Allstate, Nationwide and Liberty Mutual. These agreements have changed insurance underwriting guidelines, funded local programs to expand housing opportunities in urban neighborhoods, and modified the use of credit reports for securing insurance.