Complete Guide to Fair Housing Training

Complete Guide to Fair Housing Training is a working tool designed to provide you with all the information you need to train your staff to comply with fair housing law. This comprehensive training guide presents all the issues and rules everyone in residential property management should understand to avoid costly discrimination complaints. Major topics include:

• Learning how to avoid discrimination against families
• Realizing what constitutes religious and national origin discrimination
• Understanding disability discrimination involving prospects and residents
• Complying with state and local fair housing laws
• Handling reasonable accommodation and modification requests
• Avoiding discrimination in advertising and marketing
• Establishing fair eviction policies
• Dealing with residents who receive financial housing assistance
• Training maintenance staff, contractors, and vendors on what constitutes a violation

Each lesson begins with an overview, followed by an explanation of the law, and rules for avoiding fair housing trouble. After each lesson, you will be able to test your understanding of the rules and learn from the mistakes that other property managers and owners have made. The all-inclusive Complete Guide to Fair Housing Training is a must-have resource for your fair housing library.

This edition of the Complete Guide to Fair Housing Training has been updated to include the following:

• Complying with fair housing and lead-paint laws when renting to families with children
• Renting to people with disabilities, including a legislative update
• Dealing with special parking requests and avoiding problems when transferring residents with disabilities
• Conducting criminal background checks without getting into trouble and taking prospects' applications
• Dealing with residents who receive financial housing assistance
• Training staff and contractors to avoid sex-based discrimination problems, as well as dealing with outside contractors, avoiding discrimination based on race or color, and the latest information on complying with state and local fair housing laws
• New guidelines on avoiding discrimination in senior communities

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: How to Avoid Discrimination Against Families
Lesson #1: Occupancy Standards & Families with Children
Lesson #2: Community Rules Affecting Children
Lesson #3: Families with Children
Lesson #4: Children and Lead-Paint Laws
Lesson #5: Limiting the Number of Residents in Your Apartments
Lesson #6: Single Mothers with Children

Chapter 2: How to Avoid Religious / National Origin Discrimination
Lesson #1: Handling Religious Words & Symbols
Lesson #2: Avoiding Trouble During the Holidays
Lesson #3: Citizenship & Immigration Status
Lesson #4: Discrimination on the Basis of National Origin
Lesson #5: Discriminating on the Basis of Religion

Chapter 3: How to Avoid Discrimination Against the Disabled
Lesson #1: Residents with Disabilities
Lesson #2: Prospects & Residents Who Are Visually Impaired
Lesson #3: Discriminating Against the Mobility Impaired
Lesson #4: Prospects & Residents Who Are Mentally Disabled
Lesson #5: Prospects & Residents with AIDS or HIV
Lesson #6: Prospects & Residents Who Are Elderly
Lesson #7: Prospects & Residents Who Are Hearing Impaired
Lesson #8: Prospects & Residents Who Use Wheelchairs
Lesson #9: FHA's Design & Construction Requirements
Lesson #10: Residents with Mental Disabilities

Chapter 4: How to Handle Reasonable Accommodations/Modifications
Lesson #1: Reasonable Modification Requests
Lesson #2: Considering Accommodation Requests
Lesson #3: Requests from Residents with Chemical Sensitivity
Lesson #4: Accessibility Requirements
Lesson #5: Residents Who Have Service Animals
Lesson #6: Special Parking Requests
Lesson #7: Live-in Aides
Lesson #8: Residents' Requests to Keep Service Animals
Lesson #9: Transferring Residents with Disabilities

Chapter 5: How to Avoid Discrimination in Advertising & the Application Process
Lesson #1: Advertise Without Violating Fair Housing Law
Lesson #2: Marketing Your Apartments
Lesson #3: Marketing Your Community Online
Lesson #4: Running Specials
Lesson #5: Showing Apartments to Prospects
Lesson #6: Steering Prospects & Residents Within Your Community
Lesson #7: Apartment Availability & Pricing Information
Lesson #8: Dealing with Students
Lesson #9: Questioning Prospects with Disabilities
Lesson #10: Handling Photo IDs
Lesson #11: Criminal Background Checks
Lesson #12: Handling Illegal Drug Use
Lesson #13: Linguistic Profiling Lawsuits by Phone Prospects
Lesson #14: Rental Applications & Guest Cards
Lesson #15: Taking Applications
Lesson #16: Credit & Rental History Requirements
Lesson #17: When Applicants Don't Have Social Security Numbers
Lesson #18: Waiting Lists
Lesson #19: Rejecting Applications

Chapter 6: How to Handle Resident Relations
Lesson #1: Residents Who Discriminate Against Other Residents
Lesson #2: Dealing with Troublesome Residents
Lesson #3: Setting Fair Eviction Policies
Lesson #4: Evicting Troublesome Residents
Lesson #5: Entering Residents' Apartments
Lesson #6: Residents Who Receive Housing Assistance

Chapter 7: How to Avoid Discrimination by Staff & Outside Contractors
Lesson #1: Personnel—Your First Line of Defense
Lesson #2: Maintenance Staff
Lesson #3: Maintenance Services
Lesson #4: Rental & Maintenance Procedures
Lesson #5: Outside Contractors
Lesson #6: Passing Fair Housing Testing
Lesson #7: Using Shopping Service to Check Leasing Staff's Fair Housing Compliance
Lesson #8: Avoiding Traps When Using Email
Lesson #9: Answering Questions from Prospects & Residents
Lesson #10: Requests for Apartment Transfers
Lesson #11: Responding to Domestic Violence
Lesson #12: Avoiding Discrimination Based on Race or Color
Lesson #13: Avoiding Sex-Based Discrimination
Lesson #14: Avoiding Marital Status Discrimination
Lesson #15: Avoiding Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation
Lesson #16: Preventing Sexual Harassment
Lesson #17: Dealing with Seniors
Lesson #18: Source of Income Discrimination
Lesson #19: Residents' Guests Lesson
Lesson #20: Exceptions to Community Rules & Policies
Lesson #21: Removing Fair Housing Traps from Your Business Center
Lesson #22: Applying Important Exceptions to Fair Housing Rules
Lesson #23: Complying with State & Local Fair Housing Laws

Chapter 8: How to Handle Complaints & Investigations
Lesson #1: Keeping Grievances from Becoming Formal Complaints or Lawsuits
Lesson #2: Handling a HUD Fair Housing Investigation
Lesson #3: Getting & Using Adequate Discrimination Insurance
Lesson #4: Keeping Good Records to Defend Against Claims

Chapter 9: How to Avoid Discrimination at Specific Locations
Lesson #1: Senior Communities
Lesson #2: Fitness Centers
Lesson #3: Swimming Pool Rules
Lesson #4: Fair-Housing-Friendly Office