Fair Housing
The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® has developed a Fair Housing Program to provide resources and guidance to REALTORS® in ensuring equal professional services for all people.
The Law:
Civil Rights Act of 1866
The Civil Rights Act of 1866 prohibits all racial discrimination in the sale or rental of property.
Fair Housing Act
The Fair Housing Act declares a national policy of fair housing throughout the United States. The law makes illegal any discrimination in the sale, lease or rental of housing, or making housing otherwise unavailable because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
Americans with Disabilities Act
Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination against the disabled in places of public accommodations and commercial facilities.
Equal Credit Opportunity Act
The Equal Credit Opportunity Act makes discrimination unlawful with respect to any aspect of a credit application on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age or because all or part of the applicant’s income derives from any public assistance program.
Protected Classes Under Equal Opportunity in Housing Laws:
Federal
- race
- color
- religion
- national origin
- sex
- handicap
- familial status
State of Wisconsin*
- race
- color
- religion
- national origin
- sex
- ancestry
- age
- disability
- marital status
- lawful source of income
- sexual orientation
- familial status
* Exceptions: projects designed specifically for elderly or the disabled.
* Local municipalities also have the option of having additional protected classes (e.g. students). Please contact the local municipality if you are unsure about an area.
Accessibility Features Report
The Accessibility Features Report (AFR) describes a property condition which may be desirable to a homeowner with disabilities. The AFR is described fully in WRA Legal Update 01.03 and is available on the WRA website at www.wra.org.
What Everyone Should Know About Equal Opportunity in Housing
Brochure HERE.
Remarks Rule: Describe the property, not the potential buyer. Include information describing any feature or field marked "other" on the data sheet or in Listing Maintenance. When entering Remarks text, use only standard abbreviations, leave space between words, and leave a blank space after punctuation (spaces and punctuation are included in the character count for this field). Do not type in all capital letters. Public remarks appear on public-facing "Customer" displays and on IDX websites. Please refer to MLS Rules section 4 for complete Remarks guidelines.
Other Resources
- State of Wisconsin Equal Rights Division 608-266-6860
- Department of Housing and Urban Development 800-669-9777 or 800-927-9275 (TYY)
- For proper Equal Housing Opportunity logo usage and downloadable images, please visit the HUD website at www.hud.gov.
- RANW MLS Fair Housing Questionable Words and Phrases (Updated 2019): A list of words and phrases from the RANW Fair Housing Committee that members should use cautiously if at all in order to avoid Fair Housing issues. Use of any words and phrases from this list will trigger a courtesy email to the listing agent/office with a reminder to review the Remarks text to make sure Fair Housing Guidelines have been met.
- Fair Housing Council of Wisconsin
National Association of REALTORS® Code of Ethics